Cracked it: Illegal egg collecting could end soon.

Local egg protection campaign that went national celebrates its 21st year

Illegal egg collecting could be eradicated thanks to the success of a national campaign to protect the nests of wild birds.

Operation Easter, which seeks to deter egg thieves, is celebrating 21 years.

First launched by Tayside Police wildlife crime officers in 1997, it soon became a national operation.

With the number of active egg thieves now at an all-time low, it is hoped the practice could be wiped out within a generation.

Alan Stewart, former police wildlife crime coordinator and National Wildlife Crime Unit intelligence officer behind the campaign, said: “The variety of Scotland’s birds made them attractive targets for egg collectors, especially some of the rarer species like golden eagle, osprey and red-throated divers.

“Many of the egg thieves came from either the north or south-west of England and we felt we had to do something to protect Scotland’s birds.”

He added: “Information sharing between the UK’s police forces back then was nowhere near as advanced as it is now, so we put in a mechanism to alert all police forces with details of the main egg collectors to help coordinate enforcement and prevention opportunities.”

Tightening of legislation has provided a deterrent to potential thieves while other crime prevention measures, such as CCTV, have also been effective.

Operation Easter spread to Mull where it became Eagle Watch, now managed annually on the island by the RSPB.

In 1999, two men were each fined £750 for being in possession of egg collecting equipment beneath one of the island’s sea eagle nests.

Other cases have included a Merseyside man jailed for six months in 2002 for his collection of 450 eggs, including some taken from Mull.

With the formation of Police Scotland, the planning and management of Operation Easter was transferred to the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), where it was expanded beyond egg collecting.

Charles Everitt, Scotland’s investigations support officer with the NWCU, said: “From the early years when there were over 60 active egg collectors, we are finding that today there are only a handful left.

“The huge reduction of known, active egg thieves is a triumph for Operation Easter and hopefully the illegal collecting of wild birds’ eggs will now be eradicated within a generation.”

Picture: Kris Miller. Osprey eggs were among the prizes for illegal egg collectors.