Tagged hen harrier disappears on South Lanarkshire moor Published duration 7 May 2019

image copyright RSPB

A young hen harrier fitted with a satellite transmitter has disappeared on a moor in South Lanarkshire.

RSPB Scotland said the bird of prey was the latest to have gone missing in suspicious circumstances in a "black hole" area of countryside.

The female harrier, named Skylar, was being monitored by the RSPB near a grouse moor south of the village of Elvanfoot.

Its tag abruptly stopped working on 7 February.

The RSPB's Dr Cathleeen Thomas said the disappearance in an area where birds of prey have previously been illegally killed followed a "depressingly familiar pattern".

She added: "Her tag was working as expected, then suddenly stopped. There have been no further transmissions, and the bird's body has not been located.

"Had she died of natural causes, we would have expected the transmitter to continue working, allowing us to recover her body. Sadly, we'll probably never know exactly what has happened to Skylar."

In 2017, a hen harrier and short-eared owl were shot and killed on a grouse moor a few miles away from Skylar's last known location.

Three more tagged hen harriers vanished in the area between June 2014 and May 2016.

Skylar was fitted with a satellite tag in July 2017 just before she fledged from her nest in Argyll.

Greater regulation

Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland's head of investigations, appealed for anyone with information about the bird's disappearance to get in touch.

He said: "Yet again, a young harrier has disappeared close to a driven grouse moor, never to be seen or heard of again.

"This area of South Lanarkshire has been notorious for some years as a black hole into which protected birds of prey simply disappear.