On Saturday a Raptor Camp team observed a Lesser Spotted Eagle being stalked by two individuals and shot. The team reported the incident to the police who responded immediately and managed to find the dead eagle as well as apprehend two individuals for questioning.

It was the fourth Lesser Spotted Eagle seen during last week and is likely to have come from Germany as this is the western most point of the species range. Germany has a mere 100 pairs and for the past 20 years the population has been declining.

The Lesser Spotted Eagle is a Species of Conservation Concern in Europe and protected under Annex 1 of the Birds Directive.

Permalink: Lesser Spotted Eagle gunned down – BirdLife