| Old Codger 2008-03-29, 3:25 am |
| It's simply stunning that this village idiot thinks he can make up
such a fantastic story and anyone but another village idiot would
believe him! It's bad enough when the garden gnome anglers try and
blame cormorants or seals for their lack of ability at catching fish
whilst sitting in the same spot for 6 hours a day!
So come on people if you're going to bullshit us try and make it
slightly convincing.
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Ravens picking off angry farmer’s new-born lambs
Cost of damage to livestock by protected birds ‘well over’ £2,000
By Nichola Workman
Published: 28/03/2008
http://tinyurl.com/yrbceu
LIVELIHOOD: Farmer John Kirk fears that if the attacks continue, his
farm will be devastated. Sandy McCook
More Pictures
A Highland sheep farmer has lost a quarter of his new-born lambs since
dozens of ravens began roosting in woods near his Strathspey home.
John Kirk, 50, believes the protected birds have killed up to 40 of
his animals – including five adult sheep – in the last three weeks.
In one 24-hour period earlier this week, the experienced Nethybridge
farmer claims to have lost nine lambs to the ravens, which generally
feast on carrion.
He said the birds peck out the lambs’ eyes and tongues, leaving them
to die a slow and painful death.
And in one case, his shepherd found a new-born lamb “devastated” less
than half an hour after watching its mother give birth to twins.
Mr Kirk claims the attacks have cost him “well over” £2,000 since the
ravens started roosting in woodland at Skye of Curr less than a month
ago.
He said: “This is going to devastate the farm if it carries on. We’re
just going to have to do something else, diversify into something
else.”
Mr Kirk, who has 500 sheep at farms at Nethybridge and Dulnain Bridge,
believes ravens are targeting his animals because there is a shortage
of other meat to feed on. He said: “It’s just getting worse and worse.
The birds are hungry because there’s nothing for them to eat – there’s
not a rabbit left and no wee birds.
There’s nothing for them to eat so the next thing down the line is the
livestock.”
Mr Kirk could apply for a licence from the Scottish Government to
shoot a small number of ravens if he could prove “beyond reasonable
doubt” that they are attacking his livestock.
But yesterday he called for the creation of special feeding areas for
the birds, where they can feast on carrion rather than livestock.
He said legislation preventing farmers from leaving carcases lying in
fields meant there was little food for birds like ravens and buzzards.
Protecting such birds but restricting their access to food was
“unsettling the balance of nature”, he said.
Mr Kirk has approached local representatives of Scottish Natural
Heritage (SNH) and RSPB Scotland in an effort to solve the problem.
“These guys have been very helpful but they don’t really have the
answers. It’s the government legislation that will hold us back from
doing anything,” he said.
“We’re trying to get a licence to enable us to shoot them but I don’t
think even with a licence we would get near enough. The only thing is
the keepers could shoot them out up the wood but it only moves the
problem somewhere else.”
SNH and the Scottish Government confirmed that Mr Kirk could apply for
a “scaring scheme permit” and if it was granted it would allow him to
shoot a small number of the birds to scare the rest.
A spokesman for RSPB Scotland said: “Studies have shown that the
number of viable lambs, those which would grow up healthy, that are
killed by predatory birds is absolutely tiny. It’s less than 1%. This
is a remarkably high number this farmer is talking about and I would
find it very hard to believe.”
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