Fears after tagged hen harrier disappears in ‘black hole’

Hen harrier. Picture: Tony Hamblin/FLPA/imageBROKER/REX/Shutterstock

The female named Skylar was being monitored by nature conservation charity RSPB Scotland as part of the EU-funded Hen Harrier LIFE project.

She suddenly disappeared on 7 February after roosting overnight in an area of rough grassland a few miles south of the village of Elvanfoot for several days.

The charity is now appealing for information about Skylar though there are fears they will not find out what happened to the bird.

Project manager Dr Cathleen Thomas said: “Skylar has been a fascinating bird to follow; we were amazed to see her make a brief, week-long sojourn to Ireland in autumn 2017 before she returned to winter in South Lanarkshire in 2017/18.

“She spent much of summer 2018 in Highland Perthshire, before returning to South Lanarkshire for the winter of 2018/19, where she remained until she disappeared.

“Her tag was working as expected, then suddenly stopped. There have been no further transmissions, and the bird’s body has not been located.

“Had she died of natural causes, we would have expected the transmitter to continue working allowing us to recover her body.

“Sadly, we’ll probably never know exactly what has happened to Skylar.”

Dr Thomas also said the disappearance “follows a depressingly familiar pattern” with the area having a history of similar cases and illegal bird of prey killings.

Two birds, a hen harrier and short-eared owl, were shot dead on a grouse moor in 2017 a few miles away from Skylar’s last known location. Another tagged hen harrier was also found shot nearby in April 2015 with two other tagged hen harriers vanishing in the area – one in June 2014 and another in May 2016.

Sarah-Jane Laing, Scottish Land & Estates executive director, said: “We support the appeal for information about the hen harrier Skylar. Any missing protected species is a cause for concern and anyone with information should contact the police immediately.

“We also question the presumption that grouse moor management is responsible without evidence to support it. That is a matter for any police investigation.”