Two Short-eared Owls shot and dumped in County Durham
Durham Police and the RSPB are appealing for information following the shooting in March.
The birds were found by a member of the public, pushed into a pothole near Selset Reservoir, near Middleton-in-Teesdale. They were recovered on March 2 and sent for a post mortem examination which has confirmed that both birds had been shot.
Short-eared Owls are fully protected under The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The maximum sentence for the illegal killing of a wild bird is six months imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine.
Alan Firth, Investigations Officer with the RSPB said: “This is a disgraceful act against these beautiful owls. There are concerns about the breeding population of this species, and there is evidence that they are subject to persecution. Given their primary prey are small mammals it is difficult to understand why.”
PC Garry Dunn, from Barnard Castle Police, added: “Whoever is responsible for shooting this pair of Short-eared Owls has committed a criminal offence.
"Short-eared owls are protected by law and therefore the RSPB, in conjunction with the police, will investigate such reports in a robust fashion with the intention of bringing those responsible to justice.”
The police and RSPB as asking anyone with information about who is responsible should contact the police immediately on 101.
Why the delay?
It is not clear why the case has only now come to light. It may be that the post mortem results confirming the cause of death have only just come through. However given the circumstances in which the corpses were found foul play must have been suspected and highly likely so why didn’t the police appeal for information much nearer the time?
Surely there would a better chance of somebody remembering suspicious activity if an appeal was made at the time of the discovery?