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A gamekeeper on a Highland estate shot a sparrowhawk and packed it in a bag while being recorded by an RSPB Scotland detective.
Rory Parker (24) pleaded guilty at Inverness Sheriff Court on Friday to shooting the bird while utilized as a gamekeeper on the Moy Estate, near Inverness.
The occurrence was recorded on September 16, 2021, and the video reveals the bird circling around overhead, prior to a weapon is raised by the accused and after that the bird is shot out of the sky, prior to lastly being gathered by the gamekeeper.
A plastic ‘decoy’ owl, believed to be utilized to entice birds of victim, can be seen near to the gamekeepers position.
A search led by Police Scotland of the suspect’s address and arrive at the Moy Estate occurred on September 19, 2021, when he was jailed and talked to.
All birds of victim are secured under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and eliminating them protests the law, punishable by an unrestricted fine and/or prison.
Parker, who was 22 at the time of the offense, was fined £1500.
Ian Thomson, head of examinations for RSPB Scotland, said: “This conviction was the end result of exemplary partnership working between Police Scotland, RSPB Scotland, the Wildlife DNA Forensics team at Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture and the Wildlife & Environmental Crime Unit of COPFS.
“It is clear, however, with the shooting of a red kite on another Highland grouse moor earlier this week, and ongoing investigations into incidents on other estates, that current sanctions appear to be no deterrent to criminal activity by employees of the grouse shooting industry, with their onslaught against protected birds of prey continuing unabated.”
The preservation charity said he was the 56th gamekeeper to be founded guilty of raptor persecution offenses in Scotland because 1990.
It is now requiring the Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill, which will generate grouse moor licensing, to be urgently carried out.
Mr Thomson included: “We hope that the Scottish parliament expedites the passage of laws in the Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill, introducing proper regulation of that industry, where the right to shoot grouse is dependent on operating within the law.”
The land where the occurrence occurred on the Moy Estate is run by a sporting renter which runs the shooting rights and land management.
A spokesperson said: “As the sporting tenant on this area of land, which is used for pheasant and partridge shoots, we were shocked when made aware of the incident and the individual employee was suspended. He has subsequently resigned and has taken full responsibility for his actions.
“This incident was totally unacceptable to us and we remain committed to the highest standards of game management.”
Scottish Land & Estates likewise condemned the behaviour of the gamekeeper.
Dee Ward, vice chair (policy) at the organisation, said: “We condemn raptor persecution in the strongest possible terms and it is right and proper that anyone who commits such an act is prosecuted and convicted.
“In this case, the illegal persecution of a sparrowhawk near pheasant and partridge release pens is particularly disappointing given the progress made by the sector in driving down raptor crime in recent years and industry-wide condemnation of this unacceptable behaviour.
“We will continue to do all that we can to prevent, detect and condemn anyone who thinks this kind of abhorrent behaviour is acceptable.”
