16 January 2024, 17:19
Peregrine falcon nest eggs being stolen
A drug-addicted tree surgeon, who was caught on digicam abseiling down a quarry cliff face and stealing worthwhile peregrine falcon eggs, has been jailed for 18 weeks.
Christopher Wheeldon, 34, of Matlock, Derbyshire, was filmed stealing the eggs at Bolsover Moor Quarry in Whaley final April. whereas distressed birds gave out alarm calls.
The jury heard that after stealing the eggs, the father-of-two went on to steal from a number of retailers to feed his heroin dependancy.
The profitable eggs of the uncommon chicken can fetch as much as a whopping £20,000 on the black market and are sometimes offered within the Middle Eastern avian market.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) put in a hidden digicam close by to look at over the unborn chicks, earlier than discovering the thief on the covert footage reaching into the nest and taking the eggs.
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The footage reveals a rope drop from the highest of the clip earlier than Wheeldon climbs down. He will be seen disturbing the nest, which was being guarded by an grownup chicken, and inserting the stolen eggs inside an orange field.
The panicked chicken, which was defending three eggs within the nest, is seen flying off and giving out misery calls as Wheeldon helps himself to the unborn chicks.
At Southern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court, District Judge Stephen Flint advised Wheeldon: “It appears even the birds are usually not past your thieving grasp.”
The decide continued: “You might even see them merely as eggs for revenue however this causes harm to the atmosphere and it’s a deplorable factor to do. In your state, hanging off something, whether or not it is a quarry wall or a tree, just isn’t one of the best factor to do.”
Wheeldon was helped by a second person who helped pull him again after the brazen theft, however no different arrest was made.
Prosecutor Lynn Bickley stated: “The peregrines will be seen and heard ‘alarm calling’ with the feminine on the nest turning her head and looking out upwards.
“A inexperienced rope comes into view and Mr Wheeldon will be seen carrying a field and an insulated bag.
“He reaches into the nest thrice, places the eggs within the field and the field within the insulated bag.”
Ms Bickley added that Derbyshire was a hotspot for peregrine falcon nest thieves, and rated the second worst county within the nation for the variety of peregrine falcon egg thefts.
Defending, solicitor Clare James stated that Wheeldon, who admitted at a earlier listening to to disturbing the nest of a protected wild chicken and taking eggs, had “no reply” for his actions.
Wheeldon additionally admitted to 5 counts of shoplifting, in addition to failing to give up to police and court docket bail for an earlier look and a string of shoplifting offences within the Matlock space.
RSPB investigator Tom Grose stated: “Peregrine falcons signify the epitome of being wild and free and it’s this very attribute that makes them such a goal for criminals concerned within the unlawful falconry commerce, incomes money from the laundering and buying and selling of those birds abroad.
“The theft of peregrine eggs and chicks has been a persistent menace to those birds in Derbyshire. This case is a superb instance of organisations working collectively to deliver these accountable to justice.
“Without devoted volunteers and the efforts of Derbyshire Constabulary this may have been simply one other failed nest. I hope this sends the message that we’re watching and can proceed our efforts to guard these superb birds of prey.”
PC Emma Swales, from the Derbyshire Police rural crime workforce, stated: “It’s not fairly often we get a conviction, not to mention a sentence, so it’s totally constructive for us. Derbyshire is a hotspot for this.”
Peregrine falcons got full authorized safety below the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, enhancing their numbers after their inhabitants plummeted from fierce looking and the usage of pesticides.
It is a felony offence to deliberately or recklessly kill, injure or take a peregrine, which at the moment are believed to quantity round 1,500 pairs within the UK.
Their nests are normally present in villages, cities and cities, with church towers being a well-liked spot for the birds to guard their unborn young.
