Illegal killing of birds

Alex Hogg, of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, claims (Letters, 5 January) that just 4 per cent of Scotland's red kite population has been illegally killed. This is at odds with your report (29 December), which revealed that nearly half of the entire kite population had been illegally killed through poisoning and shooting.

I am sure the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds would be delighted to work with the SGA to agree common goals in country areas to protect sustainable employment in the game industry, and our magnificent birds of prey.

However, deliberate poisoning of birds of prey is a criminal offence, and where this involves rare species such as the red kite, the perpetrators should expect a custodial sentence if caught and convicted. Does the SGA agree?

MARTIN HULME, Alnwickhill Road, Edinburgh