England's last nest of Hen Harriers destroyed

[terry pickford]

The last Hen Harrier nest containing 3 chicks was found destroyed on Friday in Lancashire's Forest of Bowland just one week after the seasonal warden's contract ended. Read the full sad story at www.raptorpolitics.org.uk

[Odonate]

Hi all

If you read the comment made at 8.45 on August the 10th, it sounds a bit like a signed confession. Anything we can do about this??

O

[Colin Key]

Hi all

If you read the comment made at 8.45 on August the 10th, it sounds a bit like a signed confession. Anything we can do about this??

O

That was John Miles being sarcastic, I assure you of that. He is a very compassionate guy who comes from my part of the world (Cumbria).

I read this earlier this morning and it made me feel so angry and sick that I literally pushed my breakfast to one side - could not stomach it.

If I knew who had done this, and I could act without fear of retribution (from the law), I would quite happily castrate the person or persons and amputate both hands and feet - killing them would be far too kind. And, I would sleep better knowing that I had done that.

Colin :realmad:

[Colin Key]

We were awoken last night by the sound of gunshots - nothing unusual except that it sounded very close and we live in an area which is both a Ramsar and a Nature 2000 site, so shooting, hunting, trapping, etc of any kind is strictly illegal. But, the hunting season begins here on August 15th and the locals are already "limbering up" in anticipation.

I took my dog out for her walk this afternoon and found this just on the edge of my land:


http://s118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/0C0J8833.jpg



There were gunshot wounds on the breast and the left wing was almost blown off. This is one of a pair which have graced my garden at dusk for years and have bred in a nest box at the local Field Studies Centre which has CCTV installed and is used to educate visiting parties of school children.

I am 95% certain as to who did this but I have no proof, and if I did I would be putting my family and property at risk by making an issue of it.

B@stards :realmad:

Colin

[sue-o]

Not one of your better photos Colin. What a horrible thing to have to see. What is WRONG with people??? I've never even seen a live barn owl. Very depressing.
Sue

[Colin Key]

Yes Sue, very depressing that this beautiful bird was blasted out of the sky for no other reason than it was a "moving target".

The hunting season began legally today, 15th August (they are allowed to shoot on Sundays, Thursdays and public holidays). Today is a public holiday (Portugal has more than any other country in the E.U.), "The day of Assumption", and whilst walking my dog at dawn this morning it sounded as though I was in Afghanistan - I dread to think of the senseless mortality rate between dawn and midday when they all collect at the local bars to display and compare their bag in "Muito Macho" style and then chuck them all in the rubbish bins (raptors, Bee-eaters, Golden Oriole and even species as small as Goldfinch and Chiffchaff - ever seen a Chiffchaff shot with a 12-bore shotgun?).

Bloody brainless morons.

Colin :realmad:

[michael23]

I dont think I would be able to put it with devastating sights like those colin.
I doubt the spanish government do much about this?

[MichaelF]

Spanish govt. might; the Portuguese doesn't appear to :hmpf:

I've long noticed how many raptor distributions in Iberia stop mysteriously at the Spain-Portugal border.

Not that the British is any better, given the recent Hen Harrier evidence.

[birdingcraft]

That is truly disgusting and sad. Oh yes, real macho to go out shooting Chaffinches. Hopefully education can some how make a difference at some future time. It has in many places.

[Michael T]

This attitude is passed on through the generations! Children should be taught from an early age to protect all our wild life! Earlier this year someone had an article published in the local paper asking why Raptors couldnt be culled to save his Pigeons! Quite rightly the RSPB told him the law couldn't be changed to do this.

[Colin Key]

Regarding my posts in this thread about the Barn Owl, I spoke to the Warden of the Field Studies Centre next door to me this morning and he told me that the Portuguese are very superstitious about Barn Owls in that if one of these "ghostly" birds appears over your land it portends an imminent death in the household unless the bird is killed.

Colin :nah:

[Ptarmigan]

Always very depressing, to read of Birds of Prey being destroyed.

The Barn Owl photo reminds me of when I was working as an Underkeeper on an Irish Estate, back in 1970.
I spent the Summer months actually living in a Caravan on the rearing field, with the 7,000 pheasant chicks.
I had to check the Gas lamps in each hut twice a night, to make sure they hadn't been blown out & the poults chilled.
On calm nights, if I heard the screech of a Barn Owl nearby, I used to take great delight in lying on my back in the field & squeeking like a mouse, before long I usually had the ghostly shape of a curious Barn Owl hovering over me!

Naturally, I never mentioned any of this to the Head Keeper, but I also remember the night he decided to destroy a Barn Owls nest, which was in an old dead tree in the middle of a field.
He needed me to help carry the ladder, but halfway up the ladder, he suddenly let out a scream & jumped away from the ladder & ran away across the field, flailing his arms ...... he'd been attacked by wasps or bees that also had their nest in that old tree!
He was badly stung that night, but it served him right.
After all, the Owls were doing absolutely no harm at all.

Cheers
Dick