Illegal killing of raptors on shooting estates and agricultural land remains a significant welfare and conservation problem despite legal protection for all birds of prey.
Raptor persecution continues as a significant welfare and conservation crime despite full legal protection for all birds of prey under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. The illegal use of banned poisons causes particularly prolonged welfare harm — carbofuran causes convulsions and respiratory failure over hours. Pole traps hold birds until the trapper returns, causing distress and physical trauma. Nest destruction kills eggs and chicks. The evidence that persecution suppresses hen harrier breeding far below the land's potential is compelling. Legal deterrence has failed to stop persecution — licensing of driven grouse shooting estates conditional on raptor presence would create economic incentives for change.