RSPB Logs 921 Bird of Prey Attacks, Urges Game Shooting Licences

2 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 25

921 confirmed attacks on protected birds of prey were recorded in Britain from 2015 to 2024, with the RSPB saying more than half happened on or near land managed for game shooting.
The charity says the killings are driven by money, with eagles, hen harriers, peregrines and other raptors targeted to protect pheasants, partridges and grouse for paying shooters.
3 convictions this year have been supported by RSPB evidence, including two cases of trapped birds beaten to death and a Yorkshire Dales case in which gamekeeper Racster Dingwall was fined £1,520 over an attempted hen harrier killing.
Recorded incidents have fallen in recent years, but the RSPB says prosecutions alone are insufficient and wants gamebird shooting in England and Wales licensed, with estates facing suspension or loss of licences on a civil standard of proof.
Shooting groups reject claims of widespread persecution, calling offenders a small minority and warning licensing would punish responsible estates, while the government says it will explore wider measures including licensing.

Scotland now licenses grouse shooting. Will a similar scheme in England and Wales actually stop the killing?

If shooting estates fund conservation, why are protected birds of prey dying on their land?