WILDLIFE campaigners have condemned the continued shooting of protected birds near Scotland’s grouse moors after an illegally shot buzzard experienced “significant unnecessary suffering”.
The buzzard was hit in Perthshire in mid-May, just a few weeks after the Wildlife Management and Muirburn Act 2024 received Royal assent Police investigated the incident with no charges being brought.
The dead bird was found by a League Against Cruel Sports field officer carrying out research in the area.
A post-mortem revealed that the buzzard had been injured by a "shotgun wound that caused a fracture of the lower leg bone", and that ‘the bird died slowly as a result of the leg wound and secondary infection, experiencing significant unnecessary suffering.’
Robbie Marsland, director of Scotland and Northern Ireland for League Against Cruel Sports, denounced the shooting, “Why would anyone shoot at a buzzard - unless it was someone who was trying to make sure there would be more grouse to shoot for so-called sport?
“The new laws were supposed to stop this kind of wanton cruelty but this case just goes to show that the killing goes on. Our worry is that this cruelty will continue as long as buzzards, hen harriers and golden eagles are seen as a threat to the shooting industry…”
Dr Ruth Tingay of Raptor Persecution UK warned that “if the killings continue, it’s likely there will be a push to ban gamebird shooting outright.
“If businesses can't operate without killing protected species then they shouldn't be in business."
She added, "It was the persistent illegal killing of golden eagles and other raptors that led the Scottish Parliament to introduce a grouse moor licensing scheme earlier this year…
“The news that yet another raptor has been shot and killed is appalling. This case, along with other ongoing police investigations such as the recent shooting of an osprey and a peregrine, as well as the poisoning of a red kite and the discovery of a dismembered golden eagle found dumped inside a plastic bag, will test the effectiveness of the new legislation."
The Wildlife Management and Muirburn Act introduced a range of measures including a new licensing framework for grouse moors, banning the practice of snaring and glue traps, and giving greater powers to inspectors to tackle wildlife crime.
The law was introduced primarily to address raptor persecution and ensure that the management of grouse moors and related activities are undertaken in an environmentally sustainable and welfare conscious manner.
