Prey for buzzards

THE reported predation of an Aberdeenshire osprey chick by a buzzard was an example of what is probably an extremely rare event (your report, 28 June).

It is unfortunate that, on the basis of this incident, Scottish Land & Estates, representing as it does the owners of much of rural Scotland, has seen fit through its website to make capital out of the event by arguing yet again for measures to be taken against buzzards, presumably by way of “control” or “management.”

Before others rush to follow this line (predictably, the Scottish Gamekeepers Association has done so already) they should reflect on the way that nature, arguably more far-sighted than we are, has evolved among more common forms of predation the so-called intra-guild variety whereby one predator species kills another. This has occurred over millennia and has had little or no bearing on survival of species.

Let’s not forget also that man has been far and away the most effective predator on the osprey.

Patrick Stirling-Aird

Secretary, Scottish Raptor Study Groups

Old Kippenross

Dunblane