Birds of prey are illegally poisoned, shot, and trapped across Europe and beyond, primarily in areas with intensive game shooting. This represents both a welfare crime and a conservation threat.
Raptor persecution causes extreme suffering to individual birds. Poisoned birds often die slowly with convulsions. Trapped birds may struggle for extended periods before being discovered and killed or dying from exposure. Shooting causes injury that may not be immediately fatal. These crimes are almost universally illegal under domestic and international law but enforcement is chronically inadequate. The deliberate targeting of protected apex predators represents one of the most serious wildlife welfare crimes in Europe and has conservation consequences for recovering species including red kites, peregrine falcons, and hen harriers.