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Eagle Owls – Invasive pests or welcome colonisers?27/11/2010 23:06:58Richard Benyon, Environment Minister, decides against culling eagle owls - For now.Richard Benyon, Natural Environment Minister said: "After considering all the facts on the threat that eagle owls pose to native wildlife I have not been convinced that any immediate action is needed to control them. We will continue to monitor the effect they are having on other species, such as hen harriers, and will reassess the situation if necessary." Dr Mark Avery, RSPB's Conservation Director, said: "Currently, there is limited evidence to show that eagle owls are posing a threat to native wildlife, but the situation could change in the light of new evidence. We therefore welcome the Minister's decision today not to take any action now, but to continue to monitor the situation and reconsider if the circumstances change. There is no clear evidence of a wild eagle owl arriving on our shores, whereas there is a lot of evidence of captive birds escaping into the wild. We believe it would be advisable for the government to consider ways of preventing further captive birds from joining the wild population." He concluded: "One of the birds at potential risk from eagle owls is the hen harrier. The best way to safeguard the future of the hen harrier in England is to reduce the level of illegal human persecution of this bird.'
Eagle owls in the UK November 2010. There is a heated debate going on in some parts about the tiny, but potentially growing, population of eagle owls in the UK. Most of the fuss has been caused by the fact that one was caught on video disturbing a nesting Hen harrier, probably causing the nest to be abandoned (the nest was abandoned immediately after the incident). It is believed that the eagle owls are escapees, or were released deliberately but persons unknown, though there is no proof either way on this matter. While Wildlife Extra (WE) believes that introduced pests are a major issue in the UK and in many other places around the world, the eagle owls in the UK do not qualify on several grounds. Firstly and most importantly, there are historic records of eagle owls in the UK. Additionally eagle owls do occur in a huge crescent that swings from Spain, through France and Germany to Scandinavia. Many species that have not traditionally been seen in the UK are now creeping northwards due to climate change; Is it not possible that eagle owls will follow the example of Little egrets, Glossy Ibis, Mediterranean gulls and others that are now moving into the UK? Additionally, White-tailed sea eagles have been reintroduced across Scotland and there are plans to follow up with an introduction into East Anglia. Cranes are being released on the Somerset Levels, and the RSPB welcome all of these. Secondly, no one seems to know how many of these birds are in the UK. There are 2 well known breeding pairs, and the RSPB has calculated that there may be as many as 65 eagle owls may escape from captivity in the UK every year. If that is true, where are they? They are not an easy bird to miss, although they are usually nocturnal. WE does not claim to know whether the Eagle owls in the UK are escapees, migrants or colonisers, but WE does believe that if one hadn't been recorded disturbing a Hen Harrier nest, there would be a great deal less fuss. With the breeding population of Hen harriers in England down to just 7 pairs, almost exclusively in the Forest of Bowland, it is understandable that there is concern, but eagle owls are not the problem, it is the persecution of the Hen harriers, chiefly by people involved in grouse moors, that is denying the bird any chance of recovery in the UK
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