Ten wildlife and conservation organisations are calling on the Scottish Government to impose a three year ban on all Mountain Hare culling on grouse moors until safeguards are in place to inform sustainable management, and to meet international conservation obligations.
The organisations are:
- Highland Foundation for Wildlife
- John Muir Trust
- National Trust for Scotland
- RSPB
- Royal Zoological Society of Scotland
- Scottish Raptor Study Group
- The Scottish Wildlife Trust
- The Cairngorms Campaign
- The Mammal Society
- The Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group
Simon Jones from the Scottish Wildlife Trust said: “Mountain hares are important to Scotland both culturally and from a conservation perspective. We, along with the other organisations are calling for a three year ban, to allow time for all those involved to take stock of the longer term impacts of large scale culling.
Once the results of the study have been published we will then be able to identify the best ways to monitor mountain hare populations and measure the impact that management is having on their conservation status.
We believe that grouse moor managers have a duty of care to these important mountain hare populations. The unregulated and seemingly unsustainable culling that is endemic on many grouse moors is a threat to these important populations.”
Duncan Orr-Ewing from RSPB said: “Mountain hares in their white winter coats are one of the most iconic species in Scotland. At present very little is known about their current numbers and population trends.
We also don’t know what impact these large scale culls are having on mountain hares’ wider conservation status which could mean that the Scottish Government may be in breach of its legally binding international EU obligations to this species.”
In January 2015 this e-petition was started to ask SNH to protect Mountain Hares. It wouldn’t do any harm at all if you signed it now.
In December 2014, Scottish Natural Heritage called for a voluntary restraint of large scale mountain hare culls on grouse moors.
In December 2014 the Cairngorms National Park drew attention to the illegal killing of birdfs of prey, erection of fences and large-scale kculling of Mountain Hares on grouse moors.
In September 2014, Rob Edwards highlighted the killing of 1500 Mountain Hares in the Lammermuir Hills in south Scotland.
In November 2013, Dr Adam Watson said, “A preventable catastrophe has befallen the mountain hare. This is a national scandal.”
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Why isn’t the G(W)CT on this list of organisations speaking out for the mountain hare? I thought they were working for “nature conservation”? Looks like they can’t even be bothered to maintain this thin veneer.
Another recent example, is the G(W)CT advocating to remove pine marten from woodland, as part of a trial to see whether this will have any effect on capercaillie. I was aware of this already, but it was repeated again by Andrew Gilruth on last week’s Radio 4 programme, Costing the Earth despite being presented with evidence that demonstrates that the pine marten is an essential component of a functioning ecosystem.
Apus apus – they’re pretty hopeless these days IMHO
Just took a quick look at the Scottish Gamekeepers Association website. I usually do this to ensure that I have a balanced view of rural issues of course, not because I find the blogs of its chairman Alex Hogg hilarious (think someone has had a quiet word with him, only one blog since 2014 and that about rural broadband). Quite aghast to see that yesterday a comment was posted re Scottish gamekeepers have clubbed together to offer a £1,000 prize (how many deerstalkers would that have bought?) to conservationists if they can prove their land management is as good for mountain hares as it is on grouse moors!?! You would come away thinking that gamekeepers deliberately want to help our lovely hares as much as they do red grouse – until they are shot. So even the limited range of wildlife that does well on grouse moors doesn’t get off with it, Hen harriers being obvious example – gamekeepers are justified in killing hares in droves because they think they depress grouse numbers? If mountain hares do well on grouse moors it’s incidental not as a result of a conservation ethic from moor owners or employees, and it’s at the cost of other species that can’t exist on grouse moors at all – Scottish crossbill, capercaillie etc. So again in an act of desperation they are trying to make out they are better conservationists than the real conservationists. Won’t wash I’m afraid.