World Crisis Online

Some farmers are worried by the spread of reintroduced eagles Several species – notably the hen harrier, golden eagle and goshawk – are still at risk. In England there is only one breeding pair of golden eagles and 12 pairs of hen harriers when there should be many more, Madge says. There’s plenty of food and territory, the problem is persecution, particularly poisoned bait, he says.

“Persecution was rife during the reign of Victoria. And we still see that mindset now with birds of prey being illegally persecuted in upland areas where you have grouse shooting, such as the Pennines and southern Scotland. ”

A newspaper ran a spectacular photograph earlier this week of a golden eagle plucking a lamb from a field. Local farmers claimed the photograph was evidence that eagles – which have been reintroduced back into parts of Scotland – are now out of control.

The Scottish Crofting Federation is complaining that the reintroduction of the white-tailed eagle has been too successful. Donald Murdie, a crofter on the Isle of Skye and SCF consultant, says the bird has spread from its initial reintroduction to the west of the mainland, and the islands of Skye, Lewis and Harris.

What is a bird of prey?

• Bird of prey is a loose term often applied to the eagle, kite, hawk and even sometimes the owl
• Typically they have curved beak, curved talons and good eyesight for finding prey
• Raptor is sometimes used specifically to describe birds that seize warm-blooded animals during the day

• Debating animals on BBC Radio 4
• Breeding hopes for city falcons

“They’re magnificent to behold. But whereas people were initially happy to see them, these birds are now causing serious problems to sheep producers.”

Murdie says that the most seriously affected crofters complain they are losing 10 lambs a year. It’s now time for a rethink, he argues.

“It would be fine if the reintroduction was kept to one discreet area but the fact is they’re continuing to reintroduce in other areas like the East Coast and potentially Suffolk.”

Others even allege that birds of prey are hoovering up the UK’s songbirds. Keith McDougall, policy director of pressure group Songbird Survival, reels off a long list of species whose numbers are declining – the skylark down 51%, the song thrush down 48%, the tree sparrow down 89%. The reason is threefold, he says – intensive farming, a drier climate and an increasing number of predators.

There is only one breeding pair of golden eagles in England This last category includes cats, crows, foxes but also birds of prey.

“In this country we’re in the business of species balance – this is not the Serengeti plain, the Amazon or Antarctica. We’re in a highly farmed environment so Songbird Survival believes that the management of species is important,” says McDougall.

In the future that might mean extending its experimental cull of crows to birds of prey, he argues, a move that would require a change in the law.

“If things are going wrong for some birds it’s the duty of those in charge to help species that are in trouble,” he says.

But the RSPB says there is no evidence that birds of prey are to blame. Prof Ian Newton, visiting professor of ornithology at Oxford University, criticises Songbird Survival’s claims.

“There’s not a single piece of evidence to support the view that raptors are depressing songbird numbers,” he says. “All the evidence points to changes in agricultural land use for the decline in songbird numbers.”

Four factors – disappearance of weeds from fields, more efficient land drainage, intensive cutting of grass for sileage and the loss of hedgerows – are to blame, Prof Newton says.

The awe that birds of prey inspire will continue to be a driver for conservation efforts.

“The golden eagle is pretty beautiful, the hen harrier stunning,” says journalist Rod Liddle, who presented a radio programme this week on birds of prey.

“But my favourite memory is seeing an osprey at six o’clock in the morning one summer in Wiltshire. It was flying south, a big, black, white and brown bird. It was a magnificent sight.”