Scottish Gamekeeper Sentenced for Killing Protected Goshawk

A gamekeeper in Perthshire, Scotland, has been sentenced for killing a protected goshawk after it was trapped in a crow cage on an estate where he worked. Russell Mason, 49, struck the bird multiple times with a cudgel on February 12, 2024, at Cochrage Moor on the Milton of Drummie Estate near Bridge of Cally, leading to its death. He received a 200-hour community payback order at Perth Sheriff Court on Friday after pleading guilty to the offense, along with a fine of 890 pounds for separately storing ammunition improperly at his home.

The incident came to light through hidden camera footage captured by staff from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The camera, set up on public land to monitor the trap, recorded Mason arriving in a Polaris Ranger vehicle, entering the enclosure with a handheld net, capturing the goshawk, and hitting it six times before placing the dead bird in a carrier bag and driving away. An avian veterinarian who reviewed the video determined the bird suffered several fractures and a painful death.

Officials from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds alerted the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which notified...