Birds of prey crimes at record high

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And crimes against all wild birds were at record levels with more than 1,200 incidents reported in 2007, according to the annual Birdcrime report by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

The RSPB said it had received 262 reports of illegal shooting and trapping of birds of prey and destruction of their nests, a 40% increase on 2006 when 185 reports were made.

Some 34 birds of prey were shot, while 49 were poisoned, including 17 red kites and one half of the only breeding pair of golden eagles in the Scottish Borders.

Overall, there were 1,208 separate incidents against wild birds reported to the RSPB's investigations department in 2007, up from 1,109 logged offences in 2006 - when the number passed the 1,000 mark for the first time.

Part of the reason for the rise may be due to improved data sharing between the RSPB, RSPCA, police and National Wildlife Crime Unit. But the RSPB believes the true figure is much higher still, as many crimes take place in remote areas where they are undetected.

Ian West, head of investigations at the RSPB, said: "The number of reports coming in to us are the highest we have ever had, but we are still only seeing the tip of the iceberg.

"It's hard to say whether the problem is increasing or whether we are just getting to hear about more of the offences that are taking place.

"What is clear is that very large numbers of birds are being illegally killed every year and that is totally unacceptable in a civilised society. There has to be a greater effort to enforce the law."

The charity called for the Home Office to make it clear to police forces that wildlife crime should be given a higher priority, and that measures to tackle it should be written into individual forces' policing plans.