Tooth and Claw

And the biggest news so far...

...by a long way! In a partnership with the Royal Zoological Society for Scotland and several Scottish universities, we are looking at the feasibility of building a permanent world-class predator education and research centre at the Highland Wildlife Park...more news as projects develops.

AV show national tour

If you live in Shropshire and have an interest in predator issues, come along to one of our series of AV shows in November. See the EVENTS page for details.

Chris Packham Tooth & Claw book review

"You know that old one that goes "If you buy one book this year..." Well, if you have any interest in wildlife and its conservation, this is that must. I couldn't put it down and I had to ring everyone up and talk about it."

Diary: Talk, 28/03/2010

Talk, 28/03/2010, National Gamekeepers Association AGM

Forum latest: - Big cats?

Big cats in Perthshire?

Sats courier has a report of big cat sighting and tracks somewhere in the aberfeldy area!

The potential pug mark does seem to show an" index "toe in advance of the rest and not paired like a dogs print. If correct this would resemble a lynx pug mark and is roughly the right size.

What do others think?

I would have thought the recent snow fall across the country would be a godsend for big cat enthusiasts who would be out documenting hundreds of tracks. I'm SUPRISED that this is the first i've seen in the press!

As a matter of course we check for tracks after every fresh snow fall in order to get an idea of whats about. You can asess the likely no' of fox pairs, identify occupied badger sets, get an impression of just how bad an infestation of rabbits the year ahead will hold. Lots of useful info, and of course if you've had any "big cats " sauntering about while you've been tucked up in bed.

Forum latest: - Raptor cull

Seeing plenty of buzzies and sparrow hawks around but I'm expecting barn owls to suffer in the deep snow cover and low temps , finding a lot of dead small birds ,robins, dunnocks ect around farm sheds. All wildlife will be suffering and i would expect a high mortality among juvenile raptors as well as pery species.

SamR, we seem to broadly agree, I think carrion is of major importance to raptors and upland predators, it's a pity the Eu dont share our enthusiasm, regulation on fallen stock and directives aimed at changing traditional deer managment are removing this valuable food source. We still will shoot pining deer calves and leave them for the eagles ect and leave the gralloch unburied on the hill as well as any foxes we shoot ,these seem to be a favorite of both golden and sea eagles. My experience of lamb predation is different to what you posted. While it's true sheep are herd animals at lambing they tend to seperate from each other, I suppose like many herding species it's so they can form a bond with their own offspring. Most Blackface ewes can and do defend lambs against a fox, wheeling round and round, sometimes the fox gives up and looks for easier fare but often if the fox is experienced it persists and manages to dart in getting a bite or pulling the lamb of it's feet by the tail, or pulling the tail off ,so weakening the lamb till it sits down. The fox can then pressure the ewe until it gets an oppertunity to grab the lamb and make -off. A good number of ewes will birth twins, while the second is being born the first is easily snatched. Even if the twins are born safely the ewe can struggle to defend them both, wheeling round and round invariably tramples, knocks down or seperates a lamb which is easily taken.

Forum latest: - Raptor cull

Were are all the hawks and falcons this weather have not seen any for weeks now.Could it be they are dieing off as the introduced birds are not as hardy as the native ones.?????????????????????

Forum latest: - Raptor cull

I do agree with you on the points about livestock such as lambs, chickens etc used to provide food, money and other essentials which obviously need protecting. However, I feel that animals allowed to roam free in the name of sport (racing pigeons and pheasants for example) should not be classed as livestock. If they wanted to protect their pigeons from every extraneous risk then they would have to keep them penned up; the birds are released into the natural environment with no protection through their owner's choice, and although I agree this is important for their health, the risks taken when you release any captive animal into the wild are constant. I'm sure many pigeons are killed by cars and wires too, but what would you say if pigeon fanciers suggested we had to walk everywhere and live without power or communication?

The point about a lamb being an easier prey for an eagle than a hare is interesting, but it doesn't take into account the fact that the lamb is a young animal surrounded by a herd of much larger animals. A strong healthy lamb would be defended to the death by its mother and the surrounding herd. A weakling animal would usually be left to die, and the only defense of the hare is its speed and cunning. Another factor not often observed when it comes to the diet of eagles and other large broadwings such as buzzards is the amount of carrion taken into their diet. If hares are scarce and there are no lambs then an eagle will happily resort to scavenging and even piracy, robbing other birds of their kills. As a falconer and practicing member of the fieldsports community, I also feel that this decision could potentially become a conservation and PR disaster, tarring us all with the same trigger-happy and ignorant approach to nature, providing fuel for the anti-fieldsports brigade. Scotland's raptors provide tourism and publicity which could surely be used to the advantage to all, rather than being wiped out. I wholly respect the opinions of the pigeon fanciers, farmers and gamekeepers out there, but in my humble opinon a cull is a lazy, ineffective and destructive solution, if it can even be called such. I believe that there must be a way to find a more constructive and environmentally friendly way to solve this problem without all rushing out with our shotguns to put an end to one of the most endearing and important features of Britain's wild landscape.

ATB,

Sam

Forum latest: - Raptor cull

Not been paying attention to the forum lately, but amazed at how polarised views are.

I see no reason why a pigeon loft owner should not be allowed to protect his or her property if its being targeted by sparrow hawks or perry's as long as this is evidence based .But this should not be expanded to a general reduction to safeguard flight / race routes.

I used to farm free range chickens on a small scale and suffered significant losses to foxes, so i did the dens each year and spotlighted about once a week to minimise my losses . I no longer keep poultry so have no need to manage the local fox population.

I'm also involved with the management of an extensive hill sheep farm where our lambing % is approx 90% , we lose about 10% to the usual mis chances of birthing/ weather ect. We then lose a further 20-25% to predation . This is predominantly to foxes , with a proportion to badgers and a very small proportion to golden eagles and sea eagles.

The cash loss amounts to between �6000- � 10,000 of lambs this year. To this i can add approx �8,000 of manpower and time costs per annum in trying to protect the livestock from predation.

The viability of the hill farming operation is a delicate balance , �10,000 of lamb sales could be the difference that can maintain a shepherd in a job , a family in a glen, a local school and post office in a community.

If we stop predation control would our losses peak or increase expotentially?

Reading Samr 's post , Hares are no lighter than new born blackface lambs and a good deal harder to catch. In part of our Glen the eagle is the main predator of foxes with our efforts coming a poor second. I 've also watched juvenile Eagles learning to put red deer off cliffs and attaching themselves to full grown red hinds in an attempt to pull them off their feet. While this was unsucsessful, on a calf or an animal weakened from prolonged wintery weather it could prove very effective.