Dinosaurs

Brains the size of walnuts and stuck in the past.

One can only hope for their rapid extinction rather than that of the wildlife they routinely persecute.


Abandoned North Yorkshire Hen harrier nest, April 2007 (don't check the GPS, I've doctored the screen). Photo from North Yorkshire Police.

I say this because these Hen harrier eggs will not be hatching. This is, in all probability, due to the misguided, shortsighted and illegal actions of a North Yorkshire gamekeeper and the compliance of their employer, the landowner. The result of a mindset which is Victorian at best if not actually antediluvian.

This is the nest that was abandoned sometime between 15th and 23rd April 2007. It's possible the parents were killed; shot, trapped or poisoned or frightened away.

North Yorkshire Police issued this press release yesterday.

INVESTIGATION UNDER WAY AFTER HEN HARRIERS “DISAPPEAR” FROM MOORLAND NESTING SITE

Multi-agency efforts have been stepped up to prevent England’s rarest bird of prey - the hen harrier - from becoming extinct as a breeding bird in the uplands of North Yorkshire.

The move follows the worrying “disappearance” two weeks ago of the only known breeding pair of hen harriers on moorland on the Yorkshire Dales.

The nesting site had been monitored by Natural England and Yorkshire Dales Upland Bird Study Group volunteers since mid-March, and they raised the alarm when neither bird could be found.

An investigation is being carried out by PC Mark Rasbeary, a Wildlife Crime Officer from North Yorkshire Police, and Steve Downing from the National Wildlife Crime Unit based in Scotland.

They spent a full afternoon searching the moorland for signs of the birds on Monday 23 April, but all they found was the abandoned nest with five eggs inside.

“It is extremely rare for a female hen harrier to abandon her nest when she is sat on eggs because the male will provide her with food,” said PC Rasbeary. “The only logical explanation is that the birds have been deliberately disturbed and driven away from the nest. Or even worse, they have been killed.”

PC Rasbeary said North Yorkshire Police treats this offence extremely seriously and said action will be taken against those who break the law. He also urged people with information or evidence to help catch any suspected offenders to contact the police immediately so they can be brought to justice.

“We simply cannot sit back while this senseless persecution against hen harriers appears to be happening," he said: “If something isn’t done soon, North Yorkshire is in danger of becoming labeled as the ‘killing fields’ for hen harriers and other raptors. To lose these magnificent birds of prey forever would be a conservation disaster for our area.”

Steve Downing, who recovered the five eggs from the heather-based nest, is the national co-ordinator of Operation Artemis, the police campaign set up in 2004 to combat the illegal killing of hen harriers.

He said: “This area of the Yorkshire Dales is perfect habitat for a wide range of birds of prey, particularly hen harriers. Unfortunately, historical data indicates that persecution is also widespread. Hen harriers in England are hanging on by a thread. This failure, coupled with another failure in Northumbria last year when eggs were taken from a site after the female was shot, represents 20 per cent of this year’s known nests.

“It is a national scandal that persecution continues in the 21^st century. The eggs I recovered have been delivered to the scientists undertaking research to identify hen harrier DNA in our efforts to use forensic science to aid our investigations. I look forward to the day when those involved in the persecution of hen harriers are put in gaol, where they clearly belong.”

Paul Irving, Chairman of the Yorkshire Dales Upland Bird Study Group, said: “It is extremely disappointing that this nest has failed apparently due to persecution. The area, however, has a long history of such events and so this was perhaps to be expected.

“However, with such a low national population, it seems extraordinary and totally unforgivable that what is an extremely rare bird should be targeted in this way. One can only hope that the culprit or culprits are caught before we lose

this spectacular bird entirely from the Dales.”

In a joint statement, Paul Burgess, Chief Officer of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and Ian Court, Species Officer for the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, said: “We are very concerned to hear about the disappearance of this pair of hen harriers that had been nesting close to the boundary between the National Park and Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), and we hope the police will be able to find out exactly what has happened to them.

“Conserving wildlife is both one of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s main purposes, and one of the foundations of AONB designation. The hen harrier is one of the highest priorities for conservation action across the two areas.

“It would be a sad day for the Dales and everyone who cares about them if it is proved, as the police and RSPB suspect, that these birds have disappeared as a result of illegal activity.

“We will do everything we can to help the police in their inquiries”

Peter Robertson, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ Northern England Conservation Manager, said: "The RSPB is very concerned that this pair of hen harriers nesting in the Dales have disappeared. It is extremely unusual for nesting harriers at such an advanced stage of incubating eggs to abandon their nest, and we would very much like to know what has happened to these birds.

“We urge the police to investigate this matter as fully as possible so that we can find out what has happened to these rare birds.

"Regrettably, this is just the latest in a long line of incidents that have affected hen harriers in the Yorkshire Dales. Sadly, in recent years, other harriers have also disappeared in mysterious, unexplained circumstances in this area and many of these incidents bear the hallmarks of illegal human activity.

"If human interference is shown to be responsible for the disappearance of these birds then it will be nothing short of a national disgrace and one that tarnishes the reputation of the Dales as a haven for wildlife. Illegal persecution of birds of prey not only shows a complete disregard for the law, but also an utter contempt for wildlife.

"The RSPB spends a lot of time and effort in trying to combat illegal killing of hen harriers and other birds of prey in Northern England. Every harrier nest is a vital and precious resource for producing the young birds which could lead to the establishment of a regular breeding population in the Yorkshire Dales by this charismatic species."

Anybody with information or evidence to help catch suspected offenders should contact PC Mark Rasbeary, Wildlife Crime Officer, via 0845 60 60 24 7.

Find out more from Operation Artemis at Save The Hen Harrier.