FIRECREST TOURS : Guided Birdwatching & Wildlife Days

For anyone who still wants to pretend that the grouse shooting industry isn’t responsible for the systematic extermination of hen harriers on grouse moors across the UK, here’s the latest catalogue of crime that suggests otherwise. [This male hen harrier died in 2019 after his leg was almost severed in an illegally set trap that … Continue reading "72 hen harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed since 2018, most of them on or close to UK grouse moors" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/vgFmq3P

Police Scotland has finally confirmed that three dead buzzards found in bags on Millden Estate had been shot with a shotgun. The corpses were discovered during the joint SSPCA/Police Scotland raid on Millden Estate in October 2019 in relation to wildlife crimes committed by depraved gamekeeper Rhys Owen Davies, who was recently sentenced to jail … Continue reading "3 shot buzzards found on Millden Estate – confirmation from Police Scotland" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/lnaZYwT

There’s been quite a lot of news about hen harriers in the last couple of weeks as this year’s breeding figures have been announced: 119 chicks from 49 nests, 34 nests being successful (see Natural England press release here). That is the highest number of chicks fledged in over a century, according to Natural England, … Continue reading "Hen harrier persecution continues amid increased breeding success" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/A0pbHU6

Claire Dinsdale QPM, the wildlife crime officer who was leading on the Dorset eagle poisoning case until senior officers decided to close the investigation prematurely after what looked suspiciously like political interference (here), has left Dorset Police and has taken up a new role with the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). This is really good … Continue reading "Good news! Sidelined Dorset wildlife crime cop joins National Wildlife Crime Unit" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/q9QVM6L

Claire Dinsdale QPM, the wildlife crime officer who was leading on the Dorset eagle poisoning case until senior officers decided to close the investigation prematurely after what looked suspiciously like political interference (here), has left Dorset Police and has taken up a new role with the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). This is really good … Continue reading "Good news! Sidelined Dorset wildlife crime cop joins National Wildlife Crime Unit" from Raptor Persecution UK https://ift.tt/nNAjfmP via IFTTT

Earlier this year, Natural England, the so-called statutory regulator for conservation, and BASC, the British Association for Shooting (& Conservation) were boasting about a £75k donation made by BASC to Natural England to help finance ongoing hen harrier work. I was interested in this arrangement, given that BASC is an organisation at the forefront of … Continue reading "Natural England accepts £75k bung for hen harriers from game-shooting organisation BASC" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/8FVzt5O

In December 2021 I blogged about a disturbing incident I’d heard about concerning a young satellite-tagged hen harrier whose wings had been ripped off – whether that was done when she was still alive or after she’d been killed was not known (see here). I understood the incident had happened approximately nine months earlier, in … Continue reading "Hen harrier’s ‘wings removed’ & its satellite tag fitted to a crow in sick ploy to disguise the crime" RaptorPersecutionUK https://ift.tt/9b10RnN