Grouse moors throughout Scotland can be required to carry licences and may just face capturing bans as a part of radical measures to struggle hen of prey persecution handed by means of MSPs on Thursday.
The Scottish parliament voted for the controls amid intense power from conservation scientists and campaigners after a long time of unlawful assaults on birds of prey by means of gamekeepers advised to give protection to grouse on capturing estates from being eaten.
The flora and fauna control and muirburn invoice features a ban on snaring of foxes and rabbits in Scotland, the licensing of muirburn – the method the place heather is selectively burned to provide shoots for grouse to devour – and the licensing and tagging of traps used to catch crows, weasels, moles and stoats.
Jim Fairlie, the agricultural affairs minister and a former hill farmer, stated its measures “would offer protection to our flora and fauna, improve our rural companies and offer protection to our iconic moorlands”. It will “finish the stain and the disgrace of raptor persecution and [allow] animal welfare to be at the vanguard of accountable land control”.
He informed MSPs grouse moor licensing, really helpful in 2019 by means of an inquiry chaired by means of Prof Alan Werritty, used to be wanted since the capturing trade had failed, in spite of repeated warnings, to police itself by means of “shutting down” the perpetrators identified to be persecuting birds of prey. “So now it’s as much as us,” he stated.
Hours prior to the vote it emerged that police had been investigating the unexplained disappearance of some other satellite-tagged chicken harrier, a hen of prey mechanically focused for persecution by means of gamekeepers, on grouse moors within the Angus Glens close to Dundee.
The Royal Society for the Coverage of Birds stated the hen, referred to as Shalimar, used to be the fourth chicken harrier to move lacking, together with a golden eagle and a white-tailed eagle, in a space “infamous” for persecution. It were tagged on the Nationwide Agree with for Scotland’s Mar Hotel property final yr.
Shalimar’s tag unexpectedly stopped sending out indicators on 15 February; a seek of the world by means of Police Scotland, the Nationwide Flora and fauna Crime Unit and RSPB investigations body of workers had did not find both the hen or its tag.
Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland’s head of investigations, stated: “Whilst those provisions have come simply too overdue to forestall Shalimar turning into the newest chicken harrier to most likely disappear by the hands of criminals, we are hoping the brand new law will lend a hand to consign raptor persecution to the historical past books in Scotland.”
Grouse moor homeowners and gun sports activities our bodies argue licensing is going too a long way, pronouncing it’s going to injury a delicate trade that helps hundreds of rural jobs. Additionally they stated persecution incidents had been uncommon and remoted.
Scottish Land and Estates, which represents landowners, and the Scottish Gamekeepers Affiliation stated banning snaring would imply extra endangered ground-nesting birds could be eaten by means of predators.
Rachael Hamilton, an MSP with the Scottish Conservatives – the one birthday party to vote in opposition to the invoice – stated the level to which ministers had “disregarded proof and sidelined science has been frankly astonishing”. Best 4 incidents had been recorded final yr, the bottom on contemporary report. Ministers had proven “disdain for evidence-based policymaking”, she stated.
RSPB information information 488 hen of prey persecution incidents in Scotland from 2007 to 2022, concentrated round grouse moors within the Highlands and southern uplands, together with capturing, poisoning, snaring, trapping and nest destruction.
Its investigators consider ratings of alternative killings had been undetected as a result of proof used to be destroyed; knowledgeable find out about on golden eagles in Scotland discovered they did not roost or breed in massive spaces of the Highlands populated by means of capturing estates.
This article by means of Severin Carrell used to be first revealed by means of The Mum or dad on 21 March 2024. Lead Symbol: The tag of chicken harrier Shalimar unexpectedly stopped sending out indicators on 15 February. {Photograph}: RSPB.
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