Poisoner is hunted after falcons found dead in nest

Jun 25 2009 by Sophie Doughty, The Journal

A CRUEL poisoner is being hunted after a family of rare birds were found dead in their nest.

The sight of the beautiful and majestic peregrine falcon could become a thing of the past in the North East skies after one half of just a handful of breeding pairs in the region was slaughtered.

And specialist wildlife police are now probing whether the mother bird and her three chicks could have been killed by pigeon fanciers with a grudge against the birds of prey.

An investigation was launched after a falconer, who had been observing the birds’ nest at Houghton Quarry, near Sunderland noticed the mother bird had stopped moving. An examination of the nest revealed the mother and one of her chicks were dead. The two other chicks were found alive but died a short time later.

Police discovered a foul-smelling yellow residue around the mother bird’s beak, and the corpses have now been sent to a Natural England laboratory for toxicology tests and forensic analysis.

Bizarrely, a headless racing pigeon had been placed by the nest.

Northumbria Police’s Wildlife Crime Officer PC Nick Pearson said police took the crime very seriously. The force’s wildlife team is working with forensics officers to find those responsible.

“This appears to have been a cruel and selfish act against a family of birds that are as beautiful as they are rare,” he said. “I am determined to find those responsible and will leave no stone unturned.”

Initial investigations have revealed there were two incidents where people were disturbed interfering with the nest in the weeks leading-up to the deaths.

And on one occasion a man admitted when challenged that he wanted to kill the birds because they had been attacking his racing pigeons.