You’ll remember, perhaps, that the Countryside Alliance complained about the RSPB to the Charity Commission and got told to sling their hooks? ‘Your central complaint is that the RSPB has misused data and made unfounded allegations in their Birdcrime Report. Having examined the issues raised and met with the trustees, we have concluded that we…
Tag: hen harrier
Bit by bit, answers are emerging…
I’m grateful to the Chair of the Hawk and Owl Trust for some attempts to answer some queries posted here yesterday (see comment by Philip Merricks on this blog and an abridged version copied with my comments below). The Hawk and Owl Trust is, of course, under no obligation to answer questions on this blog…
Just tell us how it could work
There are, it seems, several strong proponents for a Hen Harrier brood management scheme, which seem to number the GWCT, BASC, the Moorland Association, the National Gamekeepers Organisation and the Hawk and Owl Trust. There are some people who are dead against the very idea of a brood management scheme, although not, as best I…
Hawk and Owl losing trust
The Hawk and Owl Trust has failed dismally to explain their position as far as I am concerned. This statement appeared on the Hawk and Owl website which I now intend to analyse: Philip Merricks, Chairman Hawk and Owl Trust 20 Jan 2015 ‘You will be aware that the RSPB formally announced last year that,…
Managing expectations
Let’s take a step back and look at the idea of a brood management scheme for Hen Harriers. The idea of ‘doing something’ to Hen Harrier eggs, chicks and/or adults, to reduce their impacts on driven grouse shooting has been kicking around for years. If the shooting industry had not been so intransigent, and if…
Hen Harrier Day – 9 August 2015
I think I know what will be at least one focus for Hen Harrier Day 2015 so please ‘save the day’ as they say. There is a long way to go before that sunny Sunday before the opening of the grouse shooting season but we have the beginnings of a plan… The full plan will…
So, what is the Hawk and Owl Trust’s position on brood management?
Yesterday I speculated on what might be going on in Tory ministers’ minds to lead them to consider making a highly contentious move in the highly contentious issue of Hen Harrier persecution. Rather than Ministers being exercised about how they could live up to their pre-election promises on marine protected areas, or recovering farmland bird…
Collaboration or collaborationism?
As I understand it, the non-joint non-plan for ‘managing’ the almost non-existent English breeding Hen Harrier population would have involved fiddling about with one of the nests in Bowland this year (had the landowner requested it). The two nests were ‘too close’ together despite the rather large gap to the next pair of breeding Hen…
Defra probably has one more bad decision left in it
Given the dire (egregious, failing, risible, adrift) performance of the Defra Ministers who take our money to make the environment better it is to be hoped that they simply keep their heads down and fade away once the general election campaign starts in earnest. Though I fear that it’s just possible that Defra has one…
Round up
A few things that caught my eye: next weekend is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch gamekeepers all ask for gloves for Christmas statement from OUP on removing nature from their junior dictionary I had my first Reed Bunting of this winter in the garden this week a link to Miles King’s excellent blogs on Rampisham…