Scottish farmers blame re-introduced sea eagles for lamb deaths

[Ultimate Nature Gear News]

Scottish farmers blame re-introduced sea eagles for lamb deaths
Farmers in the Scottish Highlands claim sea eagles reintroduced to the area have killed more than 200 lambs.

More...


Crofters in Gairloch say the RSPB and Scottish Natural Heritage are not taking their concerns seriously enough.
The RSPB examined one nest but said it was unlikely the birds were responsible for all the deaths.
Although sea eagles have taken several lambs in the past, the farmers say this year's death toll is much worse.
The RSPB said the birds were reintroduced into the area in projects several decades ago, but that they are now self-sustaining.

'Sheep's graveyard'

William Fraser, chairman of Gairloch and Poolewe branch of the Crofting Foundation, believes it is this particular breed of bird that is directly to blame for the rise in lamb deaths.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Farming Today, he said: "This year has been particularly bad.
"The crofters know how many lambs they put out after lambing season and one woman has lost 50% of her animals. We have been keeping lambs here for generations and if this is not sorted out, this could be the end
William Fraser
Crofting Foundation
"She actually saw a sea eagle lifting a lamb from her field and flying off with it.
"We've had lambs that have had their necks sliced, they then can't lift them and are found going round in circles".
Carcasses of lambs have reportedly been examined by vets and found to have talon damage and injuries caused by being dropped from a height.
Another crofter described going close to a sea eagle's nest and finding what he described as a sheep's graveyard.
The farmers want help to deal with the situation but say not much has been forthcoming.
Mr Fraser said: "We have been keeping lambs here for generations and if this is not sorted out, this could be the end.
"We feel they put the birds here without our consent and without asking our advice."
The RSPB examined one nest in the area which contained the remains of four lambs.
But it pointed out there are only three breeding pairs of sea eagle in the Gairloch area, and it would be highly unlikely the birds were responsible for the loss of all of the lambs.

Sea eagle predation is not a major cause of lamb mortality

An RSPB spokesman said the reintroduction of sea eagles into Scotland has been "one of the greatest conservation success stories of recent years".
Fifteen of the birds were released into the wild in Fife, in the east of Scotland, in August.

The spokesman said: "These surprising claims must be compared with a recent study conducted on the island of Mull - the most densely populated area of Scotland for breeding sea eagles with eight pairs - which concluded that between only 33 and 37 lambs were killed by the birds on the whole island each year.
"In the whole of Wester Ross, there are just three breeding pairs of sea eagles. Gairloch occupies less than a quarter of Mull's land area.
"We are therefore extremely surprised at the claims of the number of lambs alleged to have been killed by sea eagles.

Public debate

"There was also evidence that many of those killed on Mull were what is termed 'non viable', meaning they would not have survived into adulthood anyway due to disease and illness.
"Sea eagle predation is not a major cause of lamb mortality."
A spokesman for Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) told the Times it will investigate each case thoroughly and it will find solutions for those farmers affected.
An SNH spokesman told the Scotsman: "We are aware of these concerns and very surprised at the numbers being talked about.
"There is no doubt that they will take lambs, but usually dead or weak ones, and we've never heard of it being done on this scale."
A public meeting on the issue is due to take place on 29 September

[Steven Gourlay]

Just seen more information about the crofters/farmers on the news tonight. There looks like there is a lot o panic about the sea eagles taking sheep. I just hope crofters don't take the law into their own hands.

[Steven Gourlay]

Ninety years after it was persecuted to extinction, Britain's biggest bird of prey is being blamed again for causing havoc in the countryside.

Paying the price of sea eagles
Re-introduced sea eagles killing hundreds of lambs in Scotland
White-tailed eagle back from extinction

The return of the white tailed sea eagle has been hailed as one of the most successful conservation projects in the UK, with over 40 pairs breeding successfully and around 200 birds living in the wild.

But the restoration of the species - which has a wingspan of 8ft - to its former Highland stronghold has brought with it a rising tide of complaints.

While its return is welcomed by the tourism industry, crofters and farmers are now calling for its numbers to be controlled, and say they understand why the last sea eagle in Britain was shot in 1918.
advertisement


Crofters in Wester Ross, where the white tailed sea eagle is once again the lord of the skies, told The Daily Telegraph they would like to see eggs destroyed or chicks removed from nests in the area.

Some say they have been left with a choice of shooting the birds, nicknamed flying doors because of the shape of their wings, or giving up sheep farming.
The debate on the future of the sea eagle has been prompted by crofters on the Gairloch peninsula who believe it has taken 200 of the 1,000 sheep in the area this year.

There are local rumours that a bird was shot at Glenelg on the west coast, while a minister outside Perth has lost hens to a young sea eagle.

The reintroduction programme began more than 30 years ago, with birds being released first on the island of Rum and later on an estate in Wester Ross.
The latest release site is in Fife on the east coast, where 30 birds have been set free in the past two years. Another 60 could be released over the next three years.
Residents of the Gairloch peninsula have told east coast sheep farmers to watch their stock, and they fear that cats and dogs may be next on the sea eagle's diet.
They quote a local 19th century book that describes sea eagles taking pets and driving red deer hinds over cliffs. The reintroduction has been so successful it has brought with it a resurgence of Victorian attitudes to birds of prey.

Crofters initially thought that rustlers were targeting their flocks and claim they have seen sea eagles lift up lambs and drop them into the sea, while one resident visited a nest site that he said was like a "lamb graveyard". They also claim the birds have taken red grouse and puffins.

The issue will be discussed at a public meeting in Poolewe on Monday at which the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the environment agency Scottish Natural Heritage will attempt to allay local fears.

Bill Cameron, 67, owner of Little Sand estate, said: "This bird has changed the ecosystem of the entire area.
"I have spent several years on a breeding programme trying to improve my sheep and this has made it impossible. We are at the point where sheep farming is not sustainable."

William Fraser, 47, a builder and part-time crofter, added: "For the last five or six years lamb losses have been going up and up.

"There are places on Skye where the lamb numbers are being decimated and on Mull the losses are much worse than they say. We would like to see them controlled, but I can't see it happening."

Kenny MacKenzie, 70, a local crofter, added that foxes "at their very worst" were "not as bad as that bird".

"You can't control that bird," he said. "No-one asked us if we wanted that bird. Imagine people sitting in a chair at a desk in Edinburgh trying to rule Gairloch."
The crofters claim sea eagles are not taking weak or dead lambs, as scientists suggest, but choosing healthy animals weighing between 20 and 40kg.
As the name suggests, the birds also feed on fish, but according to Mr MacKenzie you could "cast a net from here to Aultbea (ten miles to the north) and not catch a single fish".

"There are no fish in the sea, any local fisherman will tell you, and there are no rabbits or hares around here so they are feedings on lambs," he said
Both SNH and the RSPB strongly dispute the claims, and say they have had no problems with farmers on the east coast.

They describe reports of sea eagles taking large lambs as "extremely surprising", and suggest they are feeding mainly on seabirds, carrion and fish given to them by "friendly fishermen".

They checked one nest in the area and found large sheep bones, which suggested they were taking on carrion, while most of the prey remains were of seabirds such as the fulmar.

Money has been paid to compensate farmers on Mull, where there are eight nesting pairs, but there is no such scheme in Wester Ross.
And while crofters say their livelihoods are at risk, the RSPB says the birds have brought more than £1.5m to the local economy in Mull alone.