Overview
- The RSPB released a decade-long review covering 2015–2024 that documents 921 confirmed incidents of raptor persecution across the UK and says the true total is likely higher.
- The report records 805 birds killed and involvement of 18 legally protected species, with buzzards, red kites and peregrines among the most affected.
- More than half of incidents were associated with land managed for gamebird shooting and the charity links many confirmed offences to people working in that sector.
- The review details methods used by criminals, including shooting, poisoning and illegal traps, and notes repeated suspicious disappearances of satellite-tagged birds on moors.
- Prosecutions were rare, with 24 convictions from 2015–2024, and the RSPB says that low conviction rates show current enforcement fails to deter offenders and supports adopting licensing similar to Scotland’s 2024 reform.