Helping to Protect our Birds of Prey

At www.projectraptor.org.uk you will see how we are developing and helping to uncover and expose the unlawful persecution of birds of prey. Taking place, deep in the heart of the Scottish countryside, there is an almost daily persecution of one of this country's most magnificent, iconic and important of wild species. Although protected by law, every year many birds are deliberately killed including: golden eagles, sea eagles, peregrine falcons, buzzards, hen harriers, red kites, goshawks and sparrow hawks as well as owls. These raptors are secretly poisoned, trapped (then bludgeoned to death), or shot. Due to the remote nature of where these crimes occur the dead birds are almost always found by accident meaning many more are left undiscovered. If we cannot save what is supposed to be one of the most protected wild species in our country then what hope is there for the rest of our wildlife?

Project Raptor works specifically in Scotland, but its findings are representative of the persecution of birds of prey across the whole of the United Kingdom.

Education and awareness
Project Raptor is a proactive organisation set up in 2013 and our objectives are simple. Through our work we aim to:

highlight the persecution of these birds

encourage debate and help bring about changes in the law

educate the public and Government about the seriousness of this issue

help to bring about change in areas where there is evidence of high levels of raptor persecution

We are working on a number of initiatives at present including a Community Initiative in which we raise awareness within the local population about crimes against raptors which Project Raptor has uncovered in their area. This alerts the community to be on the lookout for activity related to raptor persecution, as well as helping to put pressure on the perpetrators of these crimes (including possibly those who may employ them) who often live within the area where birds are being unlawfully targeted.

In the future, when possible, we hope to offer financial rewards for information relating to raptor persecution, uncovered by ourselves and which leads to an individual or individuals being formally charged. Other future initiatives are planned to include public awareness events, to help educate people about the persecution of birds of prey and what they can do to help protect our raptors from the hands of wildlife criminals. New educational resources will also be accessible via our website and featured on social network sites. All this and other innovative ideas of course will be dependent on funding.

Exposing persecution of our birds of prey
Our main initiative is our field work. Our team has decades of experience in field research and investigation and we use these skills to look into incidents related to the persecution of birds of prey throughout Scotland. Already, just in the few months since we began in 2013, Project Raptor has uncovered an alarming number of disturbing incidents of raptor persecution. These incidents are reported on our website and sadly more of these reports will be following. We work to the highest professional standards and information gathered is passed on to the relevant authorities. Project Raptor then continues to follow up and report on any cases until their final conclusion.

WE NEED YOUR HELP.
We are a voluntary organisation and offer our free time and experience willingly in an effort to help combat what is an increasingly desperate problem in our countryside, perpetrated by criminals whose aims are to deliberately cause harm and destruction to our raptor populations.

With your help our work can continue to have a vital impact; educating, stimulating debate and uncovering and exposing wildlife crime.

Why your donations are needed
We need to keep our website up to date with reports and further information on how the public can help protect raptors from persecution. We must also keep one step ahead of those committing these crimes, who are devising ever more cunning ways to avoid detection. This is why we must equip our Project Raptor team with the best available equipment and be able to travel and base ourselves in areas across the country for specific periods of time. Often, criminals who target birds of prey are involved in other wildlife crime and so our work has the benefit of directly protecting other species.

These are all basic requirements if we are to succeed in our goal of protecting birds of prey from those people who are intent on their persecution and ultimately their extinction from the land. At Project Raptor we stand side by side with others in the UK committed to protecting raptors from the hands of criminals. Our ambitious, innovative and sometimes challenging work helps support their efforts too in fighting for the survival of raptors wherever they may be.

Support Project Raptor
Please support and help us build on the important awareness we have already achieved. Our innovative, investigative and educative approach to this wildlife issue can make a real difference offering birds of prey better long term protection and a positive future.

Every penny goes directly into our project initiatives run by professionals in their field and volunteering their time and experience for Project Raptor. Please subscribe to our website
to keep up to date with our work and see how your generous donations are helping make a vital difference.

The funding target at gofundme will help Project Raptor's work to continue and help us to secure much needed equipment, materials and other essentials to assist us on the front line of criminal raptor persecution.

We think that our ask for funding is fair. We know that there are many organisations and individuals here asking for your support and sponsorship and so we simply ask this; Please read about our work and follow our progress and if you feel that we are not achieving anything then of course you don't have to fund, but if you see that we are helping to make a difference and working hard in this challenging field of wildlife protection then please support our efforts.

Thank you for taking the time to read about us and don't forget to pass this information onto others.

Project Raptor