RSPB: The Economics of Driven Grouse Shooting Report
The RSPB (the “UK’s largest nature conservation charity, inspiring everyone to give nature a home and secure a healthy environment for wildlife’) recently published a report called ‘Driven Grouse Shooting – Assessing the economic and social impacts of future options for grouse moor management‘ Or did they? Curiously, this detailed and over 100-pages long report […]
Avian Flu: RSPB calls for ban on bird releases by shooting industry
“To help limit the catastrophic spread of Avian Influenza, the RSPB is calling for an immediate moratorium on the release of captive-bred gamebirds and Mallards for shooting in the UK this year. The call is for the UK and devolved governments and the shooting industry to take a precautionary approach to limit the spread of […]
Hen Harriers: Illegal killing major cause of death, says RSPB
As everyone but the shooting industry acknowledges, illegal killing IS the main cause of death in Hen Harriers aged between one and two years, and a major cause of death in birds under one year, according to a new paper, published in the journal Biological Conservation, and led by the RSPB. According to a press […]
RSPB Investigations Officer: Reflections on a poisoning
RSPB Investigations Officer: Reflections on a poisoning “Another issue that keeps rearing its head is the lack of any consequences for Stroud’s employers.” On 5 October 2022 gamekeeper Matthew Stroud was convicted of a long list of offences at Norwich Magistrates Court including killing protected birds – yet he escaped a prison sentence. Now Tom […]
RSPB’s review of lowland ‘gamebird’ shooting: “Bleak picture”
Has the RSPB finally run out of patience with the shooting industry? The country’s largest bird charity speaks out – but in an oddly low-key way. Tied for over a century to a Constitution enshrined in 1904 which insists it should be ‘neutral’ on shooting, the RSPB (by far the most important and most effective […]
RSPB predator control
RSPB PREDATOR CONTROL HITStatement 2018 Whilst working on the Barlow Hunt Investigation in spring 2018, HIT was contacted by a a whistleblower about the RSPB’s Curlew Management Trial Programme. The whistleblower was highly concerned about the scale of Larsen trapping and employment of a bloodsports enthusiast on a Peak District RSPB reserve. They asked HIT […]
Government fails Nature again, rejecting call for grouse shooting ban
The government has rejected a call from the Wild Justice team to ban driven grouse shooting. In a parliamentary petition, the Wild Justice founders said a ban was needed because the practice is “bad for people, the environment and wildlife.” In response, the government revealed that it has “no plans” to ban driven grouse shooting, […]
Ten reasons why 2024 was a great year for wildlife
It’s that time of year again when we remind ourselves that 2024 was, in many ways, a good year for wildlife! The Tories were ousted, and the hunting industry is terrified that its days are numbered. Here’s ten reasons why this year was a positive one. 1. The argument has been won! Trail hunting IS […]
YOUGOV: survey shows Brits’ mixed views on hunting wildlife
A recent YouGov poll attempted to gauge the British public’s views on hunting. The findings will be a blow to hunters who want to be recognised as a protected minority group in the UK so they can enjoy their pastime in peace. The poll results suggest that if the hunters’ demand were decided by a […]
Snares, hunts, and shoots: Billionaire duke’s vast estate no haven for wildlife
The Green Britain Foundation recently obtained undercover footage of a fox trapped in a snare on the Duke of Westminster’s estate in Cheshire. As the Mirror reported, activists who discovered and filmed the snared fox, released it. But they said many other snares were set in one wood alone on the 11,000 acre Eaton Estate. […]
Undercover footage of raptor persecution ‘a game changer’
On 22 October Channel 4’s Alex Thomson introduced extraordinary video footage captured by the RSPB Investigations Team of three gamekeepers on a grouse moor in North Yorkshire, discussing (and then off-camera killing), a Hen Harrier. While that may not sound particularly ‘game changing’, what makes this footage especially important is that the audio quality is […]
Serious outbreak of Avian Flu found in pheasants
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has reported an outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI H5N5) in 20 pheasants released onto a Worcestershire shoot. The outbreak was recorded on APHA’s weekly updated database for week 39 – in other words between 23-29 September – in Wychavon. No precise location details are provided and […]
Nothing glorious about the ‘Inglorious 12th’
The 12th of August (the ‘Inglorious 12th’) marks the start of a key ‘season’ for the shooting industry. Over the next 121 days that industry will aim to sell hundreds of thousands of Red Grouse to shooters to kill.
See you at Action for Wildlife Day!
Protect the Wild is heading to the Peak District! On August 10th – just two days before the Inglorious 12th and the start of the grouse-killing season – both Rob and Charlie will be at Carsington Water in Derbyshire for an Action for Wildlife Day. Organised by Hen Harrier Action, the event is being held […]
GUILTY: Ashley Game Farm convicted of multiple pesticide offences
The discovery of a poisoned Buzzard next to a poisoned bait by a member of the public led to the search of a Pheasant and Red-legged Partridge breeding farm in Chulmleigh, Devon conducted by Devon and Cornwall Police in March 2021. A number of pesticide offences were discovered including the presence of Carbofuran, the same […]
Trees and the Law
Trees and the Law Trees provide crucial habitat for much of the UK’s wildlife. Birds nest in holes and in their canopies, small mammals live safe in their root systems, bats roost (often in huge numbers) in their trunks. Woodland is of course composed of a full range of plants including trees and shrubs, climbers, […]
Glue Traps and the Law
Glue Traps and the Law Glue traps, sometimes referred to as sticky boards or glue boards, are used to trap mice or rats. Non-drying glue is placed on a board and as animals walk across them they are trapped and unable to escape, their fur or limbs becoming increasingly stuck to the glue as they try […]
Northern Ireland: Red Kite euthanised after shooting
A Red Kite was so seriously injured in a shooting last month that she had to be euthanised by a vet treating her. Well-known throughout the Mournes, in Co Down, the bird, nicknamed Vivienne after the identifying tags ‘6V’ attached to her wing, was found injured in Newry, on Saturday, April 20. X-rays found that […]
Yorkshire Dales: new report proves it’s a raptor persecution hot spot
The Yorkshire Dales Bird of Prey ‘Partnership’ (YDBPP) recently published a ‘Bird of Prey Evidence Report’ which supposedly documents the status of raptors in the ‘national park’ and provides details of confirmed illegal persecution between 2022-2023. England’s ‘national parks’ are notorious persecution hotspots, so any truly independent analysis should slam the management of the grouse […]
Yet another raptor killed in Peak District National Park
Derbyshire Police are working with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) after an adult female Peregrine Falcon was discovered shot in the Peak District at Hey Clough off the A628 Woodhead Pass, near Crowden, on Saturday, April 4. Like all birds of prey, peregrines are fully protected by law (see our page […]
VICTORY! Wild Justice proves that trigger-happy Tories acted unlawfully
Campaign group Wild Justice has announced the fantastic news that it has won a legal challenge against the government. The group took action after it found out that Defra had approved gamebird licences that Wild Justice knew were unlawful. Land owners who want to release pheasants and partridges near a Special Protected Area (SPA) must […]
The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill
Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill was passed into law in March 2024. The Act was introduced primarily to address raptor persecution and ensure that the management of grouse moors and related activities “are undertaken in an environmentally sustainable and welfare conscious manner”. The Bill implements the recommendations […]
The Muirburn Bill – an achievement but nowhere near the end
Yesterday Holyrood passed the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill, stating on their website that “Scotland’s wildlife will benefit from increased protection thanks to a new law passed by the Scottish Parliament.” The new law has been designed to implement the recommendations set out in the Werritty Review which was published in December 2019. Undoubtedly […]
White-tailed Eagle shot in Ireland
A young female White-tailed Eagle was found shot dead in Ireland last week. Part of a long-running national reintroduction programme run by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) she had been released at Lough Derg, Co Donegal two years ago, and was found by Cranberry Lough 180km to the south.
We can all help tackle the scourge of egg collecting
In late February a serial egg thief admitted to illegally hoarding thousands of rare birds’ eggs he’d stolen. Daniel Lingham, 71, appeared at Norwich Magistrates Court where he pleaded guilty to five offences involving 2995 eggs, including taking eggs from a non-schedule 1 wild bird (a Nightjar) on 9 June 2023 at Holt, Norfolk. Lingham […]
Illegal to cut a hedge in Spring? Yes – and no…
Despite what the weather outside might suggest (it’s cool and wet across the UK as of writing), wild birds – in an admirable show of resilience – will soon be breeding again. This is the start of a critical time of the year when birds are looking for safe places to nest and to rebuild […]
What is ‘pheasant shooting’?
What is ‘pheasant shooting’? Put simply, pheasant shooting is the annual slaughter of millions of birds, which are shot as live targets between October and the end of January (the so-called ‘open season’ for pheasant shooting). But just as with ‘grouse shooting’ this isn’t something that can or should be put simply. It is a […]
122 Hen Harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed in UK since 2018
Using data from the RSPB and Natural England, the UK’s leading website on the illegal persecution of birds of prey, Raptor Persecution UK (RPUK), published the details yesterday of each of 122 Hen Harriers confirmed ‘missing’ or illegally killed in the UK since 2018. Hen Harriers are the most persecuted bird of prey in Britain […]
What is grouse shooting?
What is grouse shooting? Put simply, grouse shooting is the annual slaughter of hundreds of thousands of Red Grouse, which are shot as live targets between the now infamous 12th of August (the ‘Ingorious 12th’) and December 10th (the period which makes up the so-called ‘open season’ for shooting Red Grouse). But just as with […]
Derbyshire man convicted of stealing Peregrine eggs
A man has been jailed after abseiling down a quarry cliff face to steal Peregrine eggs. Christopher Wheeldon was caught on hidden cameras set up by the RSPB as he abseiled down the limestone quarry (belonging to construction company Tarmac Group) in April 2023. Derbyshire Police were alerted and Wheeldon was identified and arrested. Search […]
Post-Brexit government fails to protect nesting birds, rivers and hedgerows
As 2023 came to an end, rules that protected rivers and hedgerows expired. Now major charities are calling on the government to give basic protection to nature on farms. Until 31 December 2023, farmers were obliged to follow regulations, known as cross compliance, if they wanted to receive rural payments from the government. The cross […]
Another Red Kite poisoned with bendiocarb
Police in Norfolk are appealing for information after tests revealed a Red Kite discovered dead in North Creake had died from suspected insecticide poisoning. Officers from Norfolk Police’s Operation Randall team have been investigating the death of the protected bird of prey, which was found by a member of the public in a field in […]
Bird shooting and the Law
Bird shooting and the Law Under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (the primary legislation which protects animals, plants and habitats in the UK) all wild birds are protected. In the UK no-one can simply go out armed and shoot whatever birds they want to. However, certain species of game birds (a term Protect the […]
Plants and the Law
Plants and the Law A wild plant is an uncultivated plant that grows as nature intended it to in the wild in England and Wales. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 the term ‘plant’ includes algae, lichens and fungi, mosses, liverworts and vascular plants. All wild plants in England and Wales are offered some […]
The criminal justice system is failing wildlife
A new report once more highlights how Britain’s criminal justice system is failing animals, allowing people to hurt or kill wildlife with impunity. The report, compiled by Wildlife and Countryside Link, and containing information from different animal welfare charities, makes for damning reading. It shows that convictions in 2022 dropped by more than 40%, despite […]
Why Protect the Wild doesn’t support licencing of the shooting industry.
Staggering levels of raptor persecution (the illegal persecution of birds of prey) have been in the news again following both the release of the RSPB’s Birdcrime report for 2022 and the Scottish Parliament voting on November 30th to support the general principles of the Wildlife Management & Muirburn Bill. The Bill includes measures to introduce […]
DEER HUNTING: Has the British Deer Society landed a death blow?
Quietly, and without any fanfare, the British Deer Society (BDS), a charity ‘dedicated to building a strong future for wild deer in the UK’, has (belatedly, it could be strongly argued) published a Position Statement on Hunting Deer with Hounds. In it the BDS states, “The BDS is unable to justify the deliberate pursuit of […]
Body Cams and the Law
Body cams and the Law Body cameras (or body cams) are portable surveillance units typically used to document personal interactions and protect the wearers should they need to defend themselves if arrested as they allow officials to look back at the captured footage for a highly accurate account of the events in question. Once almost […]
The grouse shooting industry’s ‘illusion of truth’
“141 hen harrier chicks fledge as encouraging population growth recorded” (Natural England). “Record high for Hen harrier population in England” (Moorland Association). “Another record year for hen harriers as 141 chicks fledge in England” (BASC). “Population of Hen Harrier in England experiences boom” (Hexham Courant). “Hen harrier chick numbers grow for seventh year in a […]
Scottish Water looks set to ban grouse shooting on their land
The gory blood sport of grouse shooting is well underway in the UK. The rich are whipping out their rifles in delight, eager to murder defenceless birds. But it’s one blow after another for grouse shooters in Scotland, as Scottish Water has stated that it will issue no new leases on its estate. The company […]
Scottish Greens describe grouse shooting as ‘festival of violence’
The barbaric grouse shooting season began on 12 August, the ‘Inglorious 12th’. The Scottish Green Party has sent a clear message to gamekeepers and wealthy shooters that the blood sport is not welcome in Scotland. The Scottish Greens’ rural affairs minister, Ariane Burgess MSP, didn’t mince her words when she said: “There is nothing glorious […]
THREE more Hen Harriers ‘disappear’ on grouse moors
The RSPB has posted a press release today which describes how THREE more Hen Harriers (one of the UK’s most persecuted birds of prey) have ‘vanished’ on grouse moors in northern England. All three of them have been killed within days of the ‘Inglorious 12th’, the start of the 121-day blood-soaked season the industry uses […]
Hen Harrier ‘brood meddling’ slammed by Wild Justice
The campaign group Wild Justice (run by Dr Mark Avery, a former Director of Conservation at the RSPB, Dr Ruth Tingay, who set up and runs the highly-influential Raptor Persecution UK (RPUK) blog, and Chris Packham, the most popular conservationist in the whole of the UK) has just published Meddling on the Moors, a new […]
OPINION: The grouse shooting industry must be shut down
Over the last two days we’ve laid out some of the less than ‘glorious’ facts about the grouse shooting industry. In our first post, ‘There’s nothing ‘glorious’ about killing grouse‘, we outlined how the 12th of August (the ‘Inglorious 12th’) marks the start of a key ‘season’ for the shooting industry, and that over the […]
OPINION: The REALITY behind the ‘Glorious 12th’ – traps, snares and wildlife crime
The only ‘predators’ tolerated on grouse moors are the humans who pay to kill Red Grouse, not eat them to survive. Which means that cruel and indiscriminate trapping and snaring and the illegal killing of birds of prey is carried out on a vast scale all year round.
Defra cosies up to grouse shooting industry
Defra (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs), the government department “responsible for improving and protecting the environment”, has announced the appointment of a grouse moor owner to what it describes as a ‘key role’. Heather Hancock (pictured above), a former Food Standards Agency chair and former Chief Executive of the Yorkshire Dales National Park […]
Heads-up shooting industry: Avian Flu is still killing wild birds
Just last week we posted an article (‘World’s tiniest violin plays for shooting industry‘) about a puff piece for the shooting industry published by the Daily Telegraph. In our post we pointed out that shooting lobbyists were arguing that the massive releases of non-native birds to be shot should be allowed to go ahead partly […]
White-tailed Eagles poisoned in Northern Ireland
A reward of £5,000 has been offered for information following the poisoning of two White-tailed Eagles in Co Antrim. The birds were found on Glenwherry Hillfarm on May 15th and a post-mortem examination revealed both birds had ingested the insecticide bendiocarb. Conservationists monitoring one of the birds, which was fitted with a satellite tag, became […]
World’s tiniest violin plays for shooting industry
Last week Yahoo News reposted a Daily Telegraph puff piece for the shooting industry which ran with the headline, “Gamekeepers face ruin after last-minute change to licences.” Lamenting a normally supine government for actually (finally) recognising the terrible threat of Avian Flu to wild bird populations and that protected areas ought to be – you […]
Illegally set spring trap causes death of Barn Owl
North Yorkshire Police have reported on the sentencing of a man after the death of a Barn Owl trapped illegally on an allotment plot in Hunmanby, near Scarborough. On 8 April 2023, a dog walker discovered a badly-injured adult Barn Owl caught in a spring-operated trap in the allotments at Sands Lane, Hunmanby. Despite the […]
Gamekeeper Francis Addison convicted in dead goshawks investigation
On the 29th of June, Francis Addison (72) a part-time gamekeeper of South Park, Weeting, pleaded guilty at Norwich Magistrates’ court to NINETEEN charges in connection with a multi-agency raptor persecution investigation led by Suffolk Police, including the possession of five shot Goshawks. As Protect the Wild reported back in January this year, the bodies […]
Short-eared Owl shot and killed on Peak District grouse moor
The RSPB has released news of the shooting of a Short-eared Owl on Broomhead Estate, a notorious grouse moor in the Peak District National Park. The incident took place last summer but wasn’t publicised until police investigations had concluded. The shooting was witnessed and recorded on a mobile phone by an individual birding on the […]
