One-year-old bird is the 29th to disappear in the Yorkshire Dales National Park since 2015.
A one-year-old Hen Harrier has disappeared from the Yorkshire Dales National Park and it is suspected that she has been shot illegally.
Hen Harriers are one of our rarest birds of prey and on the UK Red List of highest conservation concern. As part of the RSPB’s on-going Hen Harrier monitoring, a female bird named Sita was fitted with a satellite tag in summer 2024, after fledging from her nest in the Forest of Bowland. Her tag data showed that she eventually settled at a wintering site on moorland between Reeth and Redmire, in the northeast of the Yorkshire Dales. However, concern was raised when Sita’s tag stopped transmitting on 27 February 2025.
When satellite-tagged Hen Harriers die naturally, the tag will continue to transmit. This allows for recovery of the bird, which can then undergo analysis to determine the exact cause of death. However, a sudden, unexplained transmission loss, without signs of tag malfunction, sadly indicates that the Hen Harrier is likely to have been shot. This is particularly likely if no tag or body is found.
We reported the incident to North Yorkshire Police, the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) and their Hen Harrier Task Force. However, despite a police investigation, neither Sita nor her tag have been found. In late August, almost six months after Sita’s tag stopped transmitting, the Police and NWCU formally confirmed that there were no further lines of enquiry.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park is dominated by grouse moorland, and sadly one of the most well-known hotspots for bird of prey killing. Between 2015 and 2024, 67 confirmed or suspected incidents were recorded within or near the Park.
These include 39 incidents where birds of prey, including Peregrines, Hen Harriers, Red Kites and Buzzards, were targeted, poisoned, trapped or shot. Shockingly, the region accounted for 89% of all confirmed and suspected incidents of illegal Hen Harrier persecution between 2020 and 2024. Sita’s loss brings the total number of suspicious disappearances of tagged Hen Harriers in the area to 29.
Hen Harrier Action is the wildlife conservation charity that sponsored Sita’s £3,000 satellite tag and relies on public donations. The charity expressed deep concern at her disappearance and the continuing threat to these birds.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a landscape where Hen Harriers ought to be thriving. Yet time and time again headlines about the Park are dominated by illegal persecution stories, most often associated with grouse moors. Sita’s short life and sad end should be a catalyst for change.”
The illegal persecution of Hen Harriers is the main factor limiting the recovery of this rare, red-listed species in the UK. However, as police investigations have shown repeatedly, crimes against Hen Harriers are strongly linked to land managed for grouse shooting. Here, some individuals illegally kill birds of prey as they are regarded as a threat to commercial grouse stocks.
The RSPB is calling for licensing of grouse shooting to be introduced in England. We’re asking the UK Government to mirror the system introduced in Scotland under the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024. Under such legislation, estates implicated in bird of prey persecution could lose their licence to shoot grouse.
The most effective way to put a stop to the killing of these incredible birds is through licensing grouse shooting in England. It’s very simple, the sooner this is introduced the quicker Hen Harriers will get the protection that they urgently need."
If you notice a dead or injured bird of prey in suspicious circumstances, please call the police on 101 and fill in our online reporting form here.
If you have information about anyone killing birds of prey and wish to report anonymously, you can call our confidential Raptor Crime Hotline on 0300 999 0101.
