CONSERVATION & ECOLOGY


Birds of Prey


In the face of competition


Despite breeding and reintroduction programmes, the UK’s birds of prey still face threats from unscrupulous individuals and syndicates out for personal gain. Peter Britton reports on the current state of play.


E


ven for the most armchair of conservationists, the sight of a hovering kestrel or a soaring buzzard is still a delight. For the keen ornithologist, a stooping


peregrine, a hobby catching a dragonfly on the wing or an osprey plucking a fish out of a lake are truly sights to behold. The hunting prowess of the UK’s birds of prey is simply nature at its finest.


And yet, even while we watch these spectacles in awe, many birds of prey are being deliberately persecuted by a small, yet ignorant minority out for personal gain, either by stealing eggs or young, destroying nests, or simply killing them to ‘protect’ their own interests. And all this whilst breeding and release programmes are in place for some of the rarer members of this remarkable family.


The family comprises falcons, hawks, owls and eagles. The smallest falcon is the merlin


Many birds of prey are being deliberately persecuted by a small, yet ignorant minority out for personal gain


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Right: a buzzard killed by poisoned bait, in this case a rabbit which could have been eaten by other wildlife or even a domestic pet


110 PC February/March 2019


- no bigger than a blackbird. Kestrel, hobby and peregrine complete this group. The largest group is hawks, comprising sparrowhawk, goshawk, red kite, common buzzard, honey buzzard, rough-legged buzzard, osprey and three harriers - Marsh, hen and the extremely rare Montagues; there are thought to be just a handful of breeding pairs in the country. Two eagles regularly breed in the UK; the golden and white-tailed (also known as the sea eagle or even the white-tailed sea eagle). Owls complete the family, of which the little owl, as its name implies, is the smallest, and the short-eared owl is the largest. Tawny, barn and long-eared complete this group, although there is a case for including the huge Eurasian eagle owl, many of which have escaped captivity and are believed to be breeding in the wild, and the snowy owl, an occasional but regular visitor to the northern-most reaches


of Scotland. The eagle owl has the most piercing eyes of any bird of prey, in my opinion.


All groups see passing and rare migrant birds into the UK. These are too infrequent for mention here, although each one is a magnet for ornithologists when they do arrive on our shores. So, what are the issues facing birds of prey? Put simply, competition. Land owners, farmers and gamekeepers are the main culprits, despite their cries of innocence, whilst unscrupulous individuals and organised syndicates steal eggs and young for considerable financial gain. Peregrines, for example, have been known to change hands for £200,000 in the Middle East, where falconry is still a very popular pastime.


By contrast, here in the UK, all birds of prey used for falconry are bred in captivity and are strictly monitored from ‘source to hand’, whilst birds of prey sanctuaries are heavily involved in breeding and release programmes. Flying a bird of prey in public is both educational and engaging. Where birds of prey compete with humans is through the killing of livestock - lambs especially - by the larger species - and the taking of ‘precious’ game birds, and their


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