BY MARK BIRD Recently Mark Avery of Lottery-funded Wild Justice alongside the RSPB lost an appeal against Natural England’s “brood meddling scheme” with regards to the Hen Harrier. Translocation a.k.a “brood meddling” is widely used by conservation bodies to bolster the genetic diversity of isolated populations or to reintroduce a species to its historical range. The RSPB have blocked a reintroduction scheme for the Hen … Continue reading Hypocrisy or What?
BY MARK BIRD In the second week of June I spent a week on and around The Strathy Estate (unmanaged), RSPB Forsinard and The Auchentoul Estate (managed primarily for stalking). The weather was excellent and below is the list of vertebrate species I either saw or heard over that time period. As impressive as the list may be, what was most notable was the sheer … Continue reading Managed Moorlands Wildlife Deserts?
BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN Trying to brush up on eco matters in light of recent events, I took it upon myself to read Ian Coghill’s ‘Moorland Matters: The Battle for the Uplands against Authoritarian Conservation’ when the publisher, Quiller, sent through a review copy to the magazine. I chose well. This is a masterful book and it’s written in such a refreshing way. It offers such … Continue reading Moorland Matters
BY MARK CRUDGINGTON Have the British shooting public been led into a miasma of confusion that may lead to the end of the shooting of live quarry as we know it? In modern cancel culture the opportunity to “ban” time-tested methods to assuage a “green” agenda seems increasingly common. In the case of lead in ammunition there have been reports produced for years on the … Continue reading Lead into Darkness?
The RSPB wants to get a job as the nation’s gamekeeper. And it looks like it wants to get rid of all the other gamekeepers. Is the RSPB a cuckoo in the nest? Charlie Jacoby talks to people on all sides of the argument in an attempt to find out what the RSPB is up to. Continue reading The RSPB – Britain’s New Gamekeeper?
BY NIGEL BEAN (& PAUL READ) A couple of years back I wrote a series of articles on the part the RSPB played in helping Labour obtain a hunt ban in 2004. Today I sit back with a metaphorical cigar while reading in newspapers that supporters are now refusing to renew their membership and animal rights protesters even forced them to take down their stand … Continue reading The RSPB & Foxes
