Reforming Scotland’s grouse moors
Currently around one fifth of Scottish rural land is used for grouse shooting, which causes both high levels of wildlife persecution and serious environmental degradation. Revive has been running since 2018, with the aim to raise awareness and lobby the government to introduce new legislations surrounding grouse moor ownership and management that will be more beneficial for Scotland’s economy, its people, its environment and its wildlife.
The killing of wildlife on driven grouse moors is a relentless year-round slaughter. During the shooting season (August-December) hundreds of thousands of grouse are killed every year in Scotland alone. But animal suffering doesn’t just stop there, as gamekeepers will go to great lengths to eradicate any wildlife that threaten their stock. The exact number of animals killed is unknown as there is no statutory requirement for reporting, but the annual toll is also confidently predicted to number in the hundreds of thousands. Protected birds of prey are persecuted to such an extent it is having an incredibly detrimental effect on populations and the numbers of iconic birds such as golden eagles, hen harriers, red kites and peregrines are all on a dramatic decline.
In addition to the unnecessarily killing of hundreds of thousands of animals, grouse moors have extremely damaging effects on the environment.
If you are interested in supporting Revive and transforming Scotland’s grouse moors, the Partnership Team would love to talk you through it in more detail. Please contact partnerships@league.org.uk or call 01483 524250.