Wildlife Crime: Hen Harrier has head pulled off whilst alive and 20 others go missing
One of the UK’s rarest birds of prey, a Hen Harrier, has been found dead and its body mutilated. Twenty other harriers, including 15 birds that were part of satellite-tagged tracking projects, have also disappeared across Northern England in the past year.
Hen Harriers are on the red list of birds of conservation concern in the UK, with the last national survey in 2016 recording 545 pairs in the UK – a decline of 13% since 2010. In England there were 34 successful nests in 2022, despite enough habitat and food to support over 300 pairs. In 2019, the Government’s own study found illegal killing to be the main factor limiting the recovery of the UK Hen Harrier population.
The story began in April 2022 when an RSPB satellite-tagged Hen Harrier named Pegasus vanished whilst on Birkdale – an area of driven grouse moor in the Yorkshire Dales National Park on the North Yorkshire/Cumbria border. This was followed shortly after by the discovery of a dead Hen Harrier in the same area – a Natural England tagged bird called Free. The bird was missing its head and leg, which had held a metal ring for identification. Expert veterinary assessment concluded the bird has been killed through traumatic removal of its head and leg, whilst alive – consistent with persecution. A month later, another hen harrier, NE tagged bird Harvey, vanished in this area. The police carried out a search warrant in connection with the incidents, but the ensuing investigation has failed to lead to charges.
However, since the investigation ended a further four satellite-tagged Hen Harriers (one from a RSPB project and three from a Natural England one) have disappeared in this same area, managed for driven grouse shooting.
During autumn 2022, two additional RSPB tagged birds vanished in Cumbria and Durham, both also on grouse moors.
These nine birds are separate to another seven Natural England satellite-tagged Hen Harriers recorded as missing, fate unknown, over the past year.
Finally, also in the past year, five (un-tagged) breeding male Hen Harriers have vanished, including two in the Peak District National Park in 2022 and, in April this year, one in Durham and two from the RSPB’s Geltsdale Nature Reserve in Cumbria: both these birds had active nests which have now been abandoned, one containing three cold eggs. Male harriers are known to hunt away from their nest sites, and this is not the first time that adult male harriers with active nests have vanished from Geltsdale in recent years.
All 21 birds were reported at the time by the RSPB and Natural England to the Police and the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
Commenting on the situation, the RSPB’s conservation director Katie-Jo Luxton said, “These 21 birds represent a significant proportion of the existing English Hen Harrier population. The Government’s own study found illegal killing to be the main reason preventing the recovery of this species, and these recent events indicate that the situation has yet to improve for this rare and beautiful bird.”
Natural England Strategy Director John Holmes said: "We are sickened by this evidence of persecution, which remains a serious issue and needs more focus and action from the police, businesses, landowners, and game management interests. Natural England will continue to work with partners on Hen Harrier recovery, and direct our resources towards science, monitoring, enforcement, and conservation management. We will continue all efforts to track down tags that stop transmitting, as our dedicated staff did in the case of Free, and to support the police in their role of bringing the perpetrators of these crimes to justice"
9 May 2023
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