RSPB and Countryside Alliance row over scale of attacks on birds of prey/raptors

The RSPB said today that a new “Birdcrime report” reveals how Northern Ireland’s birds of prey species are under threat, from criminals who illegally target and kill them.The report said there were 30 confirmed incidents of in Northern Ireland between 2016 and 2020 involving 26 birdsDean Jones, RSPB NI Investigations Officer, said: “You, the conscientious public, havean important role to play in helping keep our birds of prey safe. If you see a dead or dying bird of prey in suspicious circumstances, please report it to the police and myself at the RSPB. Email [email protected] and I will pick up your request and get back to you. If you want to remain anonymous, you can also call the special Raptor Crime Hotline on 0300 999 0101."However, on the same day, the Countryside Alliance Ireland countered that there was only one such incident in 2021, when the total for the whole of the UK was 108.Gary McCartney, Director of Countryside Alliance said: “The RSPB is getting itself tied up in knots. On the one hand the public are supposed to take its findings of persecution in the rest of the UK as gospel, yet here in Northern Ireland, where the evidence of raptor persecution is very low, it must be because of some warped conspiracy. There must be a zero tolerance approach to any proven case of illegal bird of prey killing, but the issue must not be weaponised as a political tool by the RSPB to attack rural communities unjustly”.