Shooting of a short-toed eagle

Last Sunday 23rd August a farmer in Gatika shot a short-toed eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus) that had been taking chickens from his farm. Fortunately the eagle survived and is under observation in the Animal Recovery Centre in Gorliz. Unfortunately for the farmer a patrol car of the Ertzaintza was near the farm where the incident took place and he admitted shooting the bird. The farmer will be charged with committing an ecological crime and although BBT fully supports the need for such crimes to be punished, we also believe that solutions must be found to help farmers to protect their own animals from wild animals. Therefore we have been in contact with SEO, the Spanish ornithological organization,  to find out what advice can be given to protect free-range chicken from such attacks.

However, it is important to stress that no matter what the problem is there can be no excuse for shooting a protected bird and such incidents must be reported to the police as all too often the people who commit such crimes get away with it far too easily. Finally if you ever come across an injured animal you should phone 112 or take the animal directly to the Recovery Centre in Gorliz.