Widllife coaliation warns the government is in danger of exterminating ‘iconic’ UK species through post-Brexit deregulations

A coalition of wildlife and environmental interest groups is calling on the government to “prevent gaps in the law” that could lead to disaster for animal and plant species throughout the UK. It comes as the UK takes part in the UN’s conference on biodiversity, COP15. And the coalition draws attention to the EU leaving […]

Red-listing and Red-listed species

We mention ‘Red-listing’ a great deal in news posts and blogs on Protect the Wild, especially when it comes to issues around the shooting industry. But what is it? Biodiversity loss is at last being recognised as having an absolutely critical impact on the survival of all life on the planet. Without animals, plants, and […]

Shocking decline leads to Red-listing of Rook, Swift, Meadow Pipit in Wales

New Wales Birds of Conservation Concern lists: 60 species on the Red List which has doubled in length in 20 years. Once common birds have been disappearing for decades, and now the Rook, Swift, Meadow Pipit, and Greenfinch have been added to the list of birds threatened with extinction in Wales. Habitat loss, agricultural intensification, […]

Birds and the fishing industry

Birds and the fishing industry Compared with the billions of fish that are killed every year, the impact on birds of the commercial and recreational fishing industries might not seem to be important. The reality though is that huge numbers of birds die as ‘bycatch’ caught on hooks or in nets or discarded fishing gear; […]

New government law could worsen record high wildlife crime levels

Record high wildlife crime levels could be worsened by new Government law, warn wildlife campaigners The warning comes from Wildlife and Countryside Link, the largest environment and wildlife coalition in England which brings together 67 organisations to use their strong joint voice for the protection of nature. The annual Wildlife Crime Report compiled by Wildlife […]

Nidderdale: Raptor Poisoning Capital of UK

Nidderdale AONB in the Yorkshire Dales slammed by RSPB as the ‘bird of prey poisoning capital of Britain’. ‍Is the message (belatedly) getting through that the shooting industry is responsible for trying to dictate to the rest of us how many birds of prey we should be seeing and where we should be seeing them? […]

Poisoned buzzard hung from tree in Co Down

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) are carrying out inquiries after a dead Common Buzzard was found strung up off the Ulster Way in Co Down. Member of the Legislative Assembly for North Down independent unionist Alex Easton has spoken of his disgust at finding the bird of prey hanging by the neck in […]

Leighton Hall Estate Investigation

Leighton Hall Estate Investigation Written by Head of Content and pro-wildlife/anti-shooting campaigner Charlie Moores. In September 2022 Protect the Wild was sent gigabytes of video and photographs filmed by investigators who had visited pheasant pens on the Leighton Hall Estate in Lancashire. We had a rough idea of what to expect, as the investigators themselves […]

The Killing Continues: Shooting industry driving raptor persecution

The latest RSPB Birdcrime Report confirms that the shooting industry continues to drive the illegal persecution of birds of prey, listing 108 confirmed incidents across Britain in 2021. The tally of dead birds includes 50 Common Buzzards, 16 Red Kites, seven Peregrines and three Goshawks. Birdcrime is the UK’s only annual and comprehensive report of […]

No releases of reared birds for shooting

No releases of reared birds for shooting Go straight to sign The shooting industry rears and releases as many as 40 million Common Pheasants and 10 million Red-legged Partridges into the countryside every year. Both are non-native species here, they can be environmentally-damaging, and they are bred solely to be shot out of the air. […]

Ban shooting of Red-listed species

No shooting of Red-listed birds Expert groups using the most current data available regularly assess the global conservation status of taxa including mammals, birds, butterflies, and plants. Using protocols established by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the species most in need of urgent conservation measures to prevent their extinction are ‘Red-listed’. […]

Avian Flu: is the government serious about protecting wild birds?

Avian flu is spreading fast: Protect the Wild wonders whether the government is really serious about protecting wild birds, not just poultry. Avian Flu, or (HPAI) H5N1, is a highly contagious viral disease affecting the respiratory, digestive and/or nervous system of many species of birds. A disease originating in East Asia, Avian Flu infected chickens […]

Another satellite-tagged Hen Harrier ‘disappears’ in suspicious circumstances

Another satellite-tagged Hen Harrier ‘disappears’ in suspicious circumstances near a grouse moor. “It is believed the protected species could have been shot down or killed unlawfully.” Under the title “Officers team up with partners in search for missing hen harrier“, Durham Constabulary has posted a press release describing a multi-agency search for Sia, a satellite-tagged […]

Peregrine

Facts about the Peregrine Scientific name: Falco peregrinus Bird Family: Falcons UK conservation status: Green At a glance Famed for its 300kmh dive or ‘stoop’, talons extended, killing its prey instantly. Peregrines were once very scarce and heavily impacted by the use of the now banned pesticide DDT. Peregrines are still persecuted on grouse moors […]

Short-eared Owl

Facts about the Short-eared Owl Scientific name: Asio flammeus Bird Family: Owls UK conservation status: Amber At a glance Named after the tufts of feathers on their head which look a bit like mammalian ears. Hunts during the day and largely breeds in small numbers in rough grasslands and the uplands. Habitat loss and persecution […]

White-tailed Eagle

Facts about the White-tailed Eagle Scientific name: Haliaeetus albicilla Bird Family: Kites, hawks and eagles UK conservation status: Amber At a glance UK’s largest bird of prey with a massive 2.5m wingspan. Largely feeding on fish, White-tails live most of the year near large bodies of open water. Thriving in Scotland thanks to reintroductions, but […]

Red Kite

Facts about the Red Kite Scientific name: Milvus milvus Bird Family: Kites, hawks and eagles UK conservation status: Green At a glance Compared with the buzzard, when soaring has a forked (rather than rounded) tail and flat (not raised) wings. Once confined to Wales, reintroductions of this beautiful bird of prey have seen numbers rebound […]

Hen Harrier

Facts about the Hen Harrier Scientific name: Circus cyaneus Bird Family: Kites, hawks and eagles UK conservation status: Red At a glance Sexually dimorphic, the pale males are sometimes called ‘grey ghosts’, the brown females ‘ringtails’. UK’s declining breeding population now almost entirely confined to the uplands. One of the UK’s most persecuted birds of […]

Golden Eagle

Facts about the Golden Eagle Scientific name: Aquila chrysaetos Bird Family:Kites, hawks and eagles UK conservation status: Green At a glance Large birds, Golden Eagles can reach speeds of 240kmh when diving on prey. Once widespread British resident now confined to Scotland. Heavily persecuted on grouse moors, the last breeding in England was in the […]

Black Grouse

Facts about Black Grouse Scientific name: Tetrao tetrix Bird Family: Grouse UK conservation status: Red At a glance UK resident, long-term severe breeding population decline. Males ‘lek’, competing for females in complex and communal courtship displays. Despite Red-listing in 2021, Black Grouse can still be legally shot in England, Scotland and Wales. There are four […]

Birds still being released and shot despite Avian Flu crisis

Avian influenza Prevention Zone declared across Great Britain making it a legal requirement for all bird keepers to follow strict biosecurity measures. Chief veterinary officers from England, Scotland and Wales have declared an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) across Great Britain to prevent the disease spreading amongst poultry and captive birds in a belated attempt to control […]

Gamekeeper escapes jail after admitting intentionally killing birds of prey

Gamekeeper escapes jail after admitting intentionally killing birds of prey. Matthew Stroud, 46, of Weeting, appeared at Norwich Magistrates’ Court on 5th October 2022 and admitted to the intentional killing of six Common Buzzards and a single Northern Goshawk. Police found photos of the dead raptors, which he confessed later to killing, on his mobile […]

Capercaillie numbers at critically low levels, national survey results reveal

Capercaillie numbers at critically low levels, national survey results reveal‍ The sixth national Capercaillie survey has estimated there are now only 542 individual Capercaillie, a reduction of around half putting the remnant UK population at real risk of extinction. Capercaillie are the world’s largest grouse and populations range from Iberia in the southwest of Europe […]

Shocking footage released of pheasant shooting estate in Lancashire

Shocking footage of dead and dying birds filmed on shooting estate in Lancashire. In September 2022 investigators from the Hunt Investigation Team, in collaboration with Protect the Wild, captured undercover footage from pheasant pens at the Leighton Hall shooting estate in Carnforth, Lancashire. Seasoned investigators were shocked at what they found. Many young pheasants were […]

News

NEWS Breaking news on our work and issues affecting wildlife. We update our site regularly so check back here or subscribe to our newsletter. You can also follow us on our socials to keep up to date. Latest newsFoxShootingRaptor PersecutionBadgerDeerInvestigateCampaign Latest news Cat found nearly ‘cut in two’ after a snare wrapped around his stomach […]

Hedgehog Protection

HEDGEHOG PROTECTION Thought to be the UK’s most loved wild animal, it’s hard not to adore this spiky little mammal. But despite its popularity hedgehog numbers are in serious decline. It’s no longer a common sight to see these shy little creatures moving slowly through our gardens. It’s estimated that there were some 30 million […]

Hen Harriers and greenwashing

Hen Harriers and greenwashing – the shooting industry avoids clamping down on persecution   Thousands of pages have been written about Natural England’s ‘fix’ for the ongoing illegal persecution of Hen Harriers on grouse shooting moors, but as not everybody has read them it’s perhaps worth a quick recap in light of yet another attempt […]

Defra not giving Woodcock the protection they need

Defra and Woodcocks – government won’t protect Woodcock so we must The government recently responded to an online petition to ‘Limit the Shooting Season of Woodcock’ launched by Wild Justice (Mark Avery, Ruth Tingay, and Chris Packham). I’ve already blogged about this petition and my hesitancy to sign it but in case you don’t have […]

Revealed: widespread burning of peatlands despite government ban

As an avid hiker, I sometimes stumble across scorched earth in the middle of nowhere: heather moorland deliberately burnt by landowners for grouse shooting. And as an animal rights activist, I’m acutely aware of the way the shooting industry uses vast swathes of land for hunting and shooting. So new statistics about the extent of […]

Gamekeeper Archie Watson charged with raptor persecution

Archie Watson: yet another gamekeeper charged with raptor persecution. Yet another gamekeeper has been charged with being a prolific raptor serial killer. Archie James Watson from Manningford Bruce in Pewsey (Wiltshire) faces six charges under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and three firearms offences and will be appearing before Swindon Magistrates Court on Wednesday, May […]

Hedgehog numbers are in serious decline

Hedgehog numbers are in serious decline It’s Hedgehog Awareness Week, a time of the year to celebrate our favourite spiky mammal. But it’s also a time to reflect on the fact that their numbers are in serious decline. It’s no longer a common sight to see these shy little creatures moving slowly through our gardens. […]

West Sussex eagle poisoned with bendiocarb

West Sussex eagle poisoned with bendiocarb…the poisoner’s weapon of choice A few months ago news broke that two young White-tailed Eagles from the Isle of Wight reintroduction project (a five-year project bringing young eagles from Scotland and releasing them on the Isle of Wight to re-establish the species in part of its former range) had […]