RBA readers poll - Have the Hawk and Owl Trust got it right?
On his blog on the 19th January Mark Avery mused about the possibility of the Hawk and Owl Trust (HOT) becoming involved a brood management programme for Hen Harriers.
Later that evening the chair of the trust for the Hawk and Owl Trust, Phillip Merricks, posted a reply on Mark’s blog in which he confirmed that they have indeed considered it, here is part of his blog post.
“As a new member of the Trust you will be pleased to learn that the Trust’s AGM held in late autumn last year, agreed nem con (ie no one against) that the Trust should become involved in the Hen Harrier/grouse moor issue. And that a month or so later, the Board of Trustees agreed unanimously (all were present with the exception of one Trustee who was abroad) that a Hen Harrier brood management scheme trial (NB trial) is the way forward for the recovery of Hen Harrier populations.”
To many who have followed the persecution of Hen Harriers on grouse moors this came as quite a surprise. Since then the social media feeds of many birders has been full of all things Hen Harrier and Hawk and Owl!
The Hawk and Owl Trust appear very confident that they have taken the correct path and have said that they have the support of the wider conservation community too, although it is not clear which organisations these are. Writing in response to the HOT’s decision the RSPB director of conservation, Martin Harper, set out RSPB’s view very clearly.
Those of you who follow us on social media will know by now that the HOT approach is not one we would agree with. The fundamental reason harriers are near extinct as a breeding bird is because of illegal persecution, and this problem has not been addressed or resolved.
However HOT are a long established and respected conservation organisation who do tremendous amount of work protecting Britain’s raptors. To a lot of birders it seems they are thinking the unthinkable but perhaps they are being very brave and doing what may seem unpalatable, in order to secure the future of English Hen Harriers.
Given there are some many strong views on the matter we are very interested to hear what you feel about the decision. Is it the right thing to do for Hen Harriers? Has enough been done to stop the illegal killing before a brood management programme can begin? Are the HOT being brave conservationists?
So in this week’s poll we are asking you if you agree with the Hawk and Owl Trust’s position. We are also giving you the opportunity to have include any comments you may have on the decision. We don’t know if the Hawk and Owl trust will be interested in the results but we will certainly pass them on once the poll has closed. The poll will run until 3rd Feb and results will be posted here and in our weekly newsletter.
The poll is anonymous, even if you are logged into the RBA website your user details are not associated with your vote.
Rare Bird Alert
28 Jan 2015
