The RSPB has issued a press release confirming our fears that 2007 has shown a significance resurgence of poisoning activity. This record of incidents reported has been confirmed by the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency (SASA) and shows that there were 11 deliberate cases of poisoning, five in Perthshire, two in Stirlingshire and one each in Inverness-shire, South Lanarkshire and Nairn & Moray. The illegal killing of Red Kites is having a devastating impact on the species. Many land managers welcome Red Kites and have played a key role in the reintroduction programme, but clearly a number involved in game management continue with indiscriminate and illegal abuse of banned agricultural pesticides by laying poison bates. As the press release points out the figures for birds found are a conservative representation of the levels of illegal persecution taking place in Scotland, as the corpses of deliberately killed Kites are more likely to be hidden or disposed of so that they are unlikely to be found by any passing members of the public. In effect we are probably dealing with the tip of the iceberg which suggests that the laying of open poisoned baits in the countryside, a practice illegal since the early 1900's, is still widespread. For full details please see http://www.rspb.org.uk/news/details.asp?id=tcm:9-178957

On several recent occasions this website has been extremely critical of what is best described as Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) 'spin'. This follows the predictable line that individuals, with perhaps a grudge against shooting estates, are wandering the countryside and leaving poisoned baits around and these are invariably picked up by wandering Red Kites or even Golden Eagles. As an interesting ajunct to the article above, RSPB has published this chart with a breakdown of occupation type for all those convicted of bird of prey offences during the last 10 years. The results need little explanation here, suffice it to say that SGA needs to look little further than its own doorstep to find the perpetrators of poisoning crimes against raptors.

The Raptor Breeding Report for 2005 has just been released and circulated. It reveals that some 3618 home ranges were visited in the spring to check for occupation, an increase of 4% on previous years. Voles are an important factor for a number of species and reduced breeding success for Hen Harrier, Common Kestrel and Barn Owl was thought to have reflected reduced vole numbers. In particular, the Short-eared Owl, a specialist vole hunter,was possibly seriously affected with only 11 nesting attempts in two regions and an apparent absence in other areas where there was suitable habitat. The Chairman of Scottish Natural Heritage, Andrew Thin, provides the preface written at the time of the discovery of the poisoned Golden Eagle in the Borders. Andrew Thin writes - "We simply have to find ways to eliminate such practices. They damage Scotland's international reputation, and they reduce public support for legitimate field sports to the detriment of many of our most fragile rural communities. Problems associated with illegal killings remain and these restrict the distribution and abundance of several species. I do hope that in the coming year we can redouble our collective efforts to improve dialogue between the different interests involved, searching even harder for common ground and a more effective way to eventually eliminate this stain on our country." A pdf is available on the Scottish Raptor Monitoring Scheme pages of this site.

As a follow-up to our news item on 3rd December, The Scotsman has carried a headline story with extensive coverage - see http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Claim-and-denial-as-a.3589649.jp. The article actually names the estate as the Glenogil Estate in Angus which is owned by John Dodd a leading figure in the Scottish financial world. The Scotsman also suggested that the Estate is considering legal action against Tayside Police over the official statement released regarding the incident, despite the fact that the police statement made no reference to a specific estate. In the letters page of the same issue of the Scotsman Alex Hogg of the SGA describes a report carried by the newspaper on 4.12.07 as one of the worst examples of anti-gamekeeper propaganda put out by the RSPB and police concerning wildlife crime. Mr Hogg's comments in the original article are shown below. He also added that the police should use facts and truth not speculation and gossip. As the Persecution pages on this website will show, SRSGs are in complete support of the RSPB and police effort in the fight against wildlife crime. All raptor workers have experience of finding that protected birds of prey have disappeared in extremely suspicious circumstances and where it can sometimes be difficult to point the finger of blame. In this instance SRSGs are confident that the judgement to make the matter public would not be taken without full consideration of all the evidence, and applaud the decision by Tayside Police to make a statement, in what is after all a matter of considerable public interest. Whilst the SGA claim to be a partner in fighting wildlife crime, unfortunately their public pronouncements show little evidence of any such commitment. Rather than criticise the police and RSPB in their efforts to try and stamp out serious wildlife crime, it would be encouraging, albeit only occasionally, if they were seen to provide some positive support in this effort, and perhaps accept that such barbaric deeds are perpetrated by individuals who call themselves gamekeepers, whether members of the SGA or otherwise.

The name of Eddie Balfour will be forever linked to Orkney and to Hen Harrier studies. He died in 1974 and Orkney Field Club are to be congratulated on producing a book about Eddie's life, interviews with folk who knew and worked with him, as well as a number of papers Eddie wrote about the breeding biology of Hen Harriers. Details of where the book can be obtained are shown on the Publications page.

Tayside Police has announced that one of the young White-tailed Eagles recently released in the east of Scotland has been deliberately killed. Alan Stewart said "We recently received confidential information that a White-tailed Eagle had been killed on an Angus Grouse Moor. The person reporting was very specific about where the bird had been killed and even named the individual who had been responsible. Though a dead bird has not been recovered, what backs up the information were the regular sightings of the bird in the area up to the approximate date of the report of it having been killed. The bird had been radio-tagged and at the time it disappeared off the radar. The bird, with distinctive white wing tags was regularly spotted in north-east Angus, especially between Kirriemuir and Montrose. One farmer was so pleased about a sighting - and the fact he managed to get a close-up photograph of the bird - he sent the photograph to me as proof that we really had White-tailed Eagles back in his area." Though Tayside Police did not name the estate involved, it is understood that it is an estate where the gamekeepers have a considerable reputation for the indiscriminate destruction of wildlife - it is hoped that the authorities will give it the attention it clearly merits! Unfortunately this is the third casualty from the 15 birds in the first batch of the East Scotland release. A number of newspapers are carrying this story including the Scotsman http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1891292007. The Scotsman carries a quote from Alex Hogg of the SGA who "doubted gamekeepers were involved, as Eagles caused no problems on Grouse moors - he added "I thought this would lead to trouble. As soon as one of these birds is found dead, the finger gets pointed at a shooting estate." Perhaps before Mr Hogg tries to defend the indefensible he should have a discreet word with Tayside Police who would no doubt try and assist his understanding of the matter. It is also understood that a fourth Sea Eagle from this reintroduction has been found dead in another part of Scotland but details are being withheld until the full results of a post mortem are made available.

The RRF 2009 annual conference will be held overseas for the first time, to reflect the global interests of its membership. Hosted by the Scottish Raptor Groups, this event will be held at the exclusive Atholl Palace Hotel at Pitlochry in Highland Perthshire, with a full programme of scientific presentations, workshops and seminars. Social events include the hire of the nearby Blair Castle for an evening ceilidh and fieldtrips which include the spectacular west coast of Mull for otters and eagles. The conference website can be found at http://rrfconferencescotland2009.org. Delegate numbers are limited to 300 so early booking is advisable. Registration will open on the website in December 2007 and priority will be given to RRF and SRSG members. For further details or to add your name to the mailing list for further announcements, please contact local organising committee chair Ruth Tingay at with Scotland Conference 2009 as the subject header.