Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority pulls out of “unsuccessful” partnership to protect birds of prey

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA) has shut down an “unsuccessful” partnership with shooting groups aimed at tackling crimes against birds of prey.

Park authority chiefs say they will take a different approach in the future after cancelling the Yorkshire Dales National Park Bird of Prey Partnership.
The decision has been taken amid concerns that raptors, including rare hen harriers, have continued to face persecution in the national park despite the collaboration.

According to a new report by the park authority, there have been confirmed incidents of persecution in each year since 2019, including three in 2023.  In 2023, at least eight hen harriers fitted with satellite tracking tags disappeared while in the national park, according to the park authority.
Between 2007 and 2017, no hen harrier chicks fledged in the national park.

Since then, the park authority said there had been a marked increase in nesting attempts – reaching 15 in 2023 – and in the numbers of chicks fledged.  However, there were no nesting attempts at all in 2024, according to the authority.

The bird of prey partnership was established in 2020 and included the Moorland Association, the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation and Northern England Raptor Forum, as well as government agency Natural England. The RSPB pulled out of the group in 2023 amid concerns about the partnership’s leadership and effectiveness.

David Butterworth, chief executive of the YDNPA, said: “With a new national park management plan recently adopted and with the final bird of prey evidence report just published, now is the time for a different approach because the current one has just not delivered sufficient results.
“Thanks to the efforts of a number of landowners and land managers who understand the value and importance of bird of prey conservation, we have seen some tentatively encouraging results in terms of successful breeding of hen harriers and other species in recent years.
But he added: “Sadly, all the initiatives to tackle birds of prey crimes have been unsuccessful.”

The park authority said a new national initiative to tackle bird of prey persecution, a national police-led hen harrier taskforce, and the development of a national wildlife crime strategy would provide the framework for the authority’s efforts to tackle the persecution of birds of prey in the future.
In response to the announcement, Andrew Gilruth, chief executive of the York-based Moorland Association, said efforts to protect birds of prey had actually been an “astonishing success”.

“The idea that bird of prey numbers are down doesn’t stand the test of reality. Bird of prey numbers are at record levels. And Natural England’s own figures show hen harrier numbers are at a 200-year high. Natural England data also shows that 80 per cent of hen harriers nest on grouse moors. This means hen harriers are choosing to nest on grouse moors and they’re clearly thriving.”

Mr Gilruth said convictions for killing birds of prey were at a record low, with only four reported last year.  He added: “None of them had anything to do with grouse shooting. The park authority should wake up and celebrate what has been an astonishing success story.”

A spokesperson for the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation (NGO) said: “The NGO are very keen for the group to continue in some format with the same aims and targets; however, as it is still very early days we are still looking at how this might be achieved.”