Mysterious Circumstances and Bird Conservation

12min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

The speakers delve into the mysterious circumstances surrounding a tampered camera in an estate, questioning the involvement of the landowner and gamekeepers. They also highlight the success of bird conservation efforts on the estate, while discussing the challenges faced by conservationists and the ongoing persecution of birds. The chapter concludes with a mention of tagged hen Harriers that have stopped transmitting data, indicating possible bird deaths.

In this special Age of Extinction mini-series from Science Weekly, which first aired in August 2023, the Guardian’s biodiversity reporter, Phoebe Weston, explores the murky world of the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors, and asks why it is so difficult to solve these crimes. In episode two, Phoebe speaks to the people trying to protect these rare birds but, as she digs deeper, she encounters a surprising silence around the killing of a hen harrier’s chicks. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod