Another shot Raven, the latest victim in the Peak District National Park

• In February 2025 a Raven was found shot near Bradfield, South Yorkshire, following a similar incident in the same area 6 months earlier.
• This incident is the latest in a series of confirmed persecution incidents involving protected birds in this area of the Peak District National Park in recent years.

In August 2024, a Raven was found shot dead near Agden Side Road, Bradfield – within the Peak District National Park. Although South Yorkshire Police appealed for the public’s help, no one has been charged in connection with the offence.

We can now reveal that six months later, on 2 February 2025, another dead Raven was discovered by a member of the public - less than three kilometres away from the location of the first incident.

An x-ray revealed several pieces of shot embedded in the Raven’s body. Post-mortem analysis confirmed that it had been shot with a shotgun, and died instantly, or shortly after being shot. The RSPB Investigations team reported the crime to South Yorkshire Police and assisted with the investigation, but again no one has been identified or charged in connection with the incident.

Despite it being illegal to intentionally kill, injure or take a wild bird in the UK, under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, Ravens and bird of prey species are being illegally targeted and killed in many upland areas of the UK.

Sadly, there is a long history of incidents involving the illegal killing of protected bird species in the Peak District National Park, including birds of prey and Ravens. In addition to the two shot Ravens, in the last five years (2020-2024) 17 illegal persecution incidents involving 17 individual birds of prey, and a dog, have been recorded in the National Park. These confirmed incidents have involved a number of bird of prey species being shot trapped and poisoned, including Buzzards and Short-eared Owls, and also rare and recovering species, such as Peregrine Falcons, Goshawks and a Hen Harrier. These figures are likely to represent the tip of the iceberg as only a fraction of these incidents are detected and reported - with the true figure likely being significantly higher.

In February 2022, a satellite-tagged male Hen Harrier (a red-listed species), disappeared after roosting on a grouse moor in the Peak District National Park. The satellite tag - which the police confirmed had been deliberately cut off – was found three days later, suggesting the bird was shot and the tag removed and discarded away from the location.  This incident would have gone undetected, if the Hen Harrier had not been satellite tagged.

See the table below for more information relating to these crimes. All incidents were reported to the police, but no one has been identified or charged in connection with any of these crimes.

Tom Grose, RSPB Investigations Officer, said: “The ‘Peak District National Park’ – a place many of us visit to enjoy nature – is still a notorious hotspot for the illegal killing of birds of prey and Ravens. These dramatic, upland landscapes should be safe havens for protected species, but time and again we see evidence of serious wildlife crimes. Tragically, what we uncover is likely just the tip of the iceberg. In areas this vast and isolated, many more incidents will go undetected.”

Phil Mulligan, Chief Executive for the Peak District National Park Authority, said:  Extensive work to restore areas of degraded moorland in the Peak District National Park means the moors are in a better state than they have been for the last 200 years. However, birds of prey, an essential part of the ecosystem, are conspicuously absent or under-represented in many parts of the Peak District. Their illegal killing is a blight on these internationally important moors and deprives people of the spectacular wildlife experiences they provide. The National Park Authority unequivocally condemns wildlife crime and calls on landowners and managers to help prevent the actions of a small number of people from tarnishing the reputation of the majority.

Many of these incidents have taken place on land managed for grouse shooting and the two Ravens were found very close to grouse moorland, although it is unknown who may have shot them.

The RSPB is urging the UK Government to introduce a licensing scheme in England for grouse shooting (as is now law in Scotland) and gamebird shooting. If criminal activity – such as the killing of protected birds is detected on an estate, then this licence could be revoked, which could be a powerful deterrent.

If you have any information relating to either of these incidents or any other crimes involving the illegal killing or targeting of birds of prey, please contact South Yorkshire Police and the RSPB Investigations team. Call the Police on 101 and fill in the RSPB’s online reporting form: www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/wild-bird-crime-report-form  If you have information about anyone killing Ravens or birds of prey which you wish to report anonymously, please call the RSPB’s confidential Raptor Crime Hotline on 0300 999 0101.