Gamekeeper fined for persecuting hen harrier in ‘landmark’ case
A head gamekeeper has been fined for persecuting legally-protected hen harriers in what was understood to be a legal first, police have said.
Racster Dingwall, 35, was caught by a hidden Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) camera on a grouse moor in Grassington, North Yorkshire, discussing shooting the birds of prey.
Video analysis later found that he was in possession of a semi-automatic shotgun for the sole purpose of killing a hen harrier, North Yorkshire Police (NYP) said.
The RSPB said Dingwall was working as head gamekeeper for the Conistone and Grassington Estate in the Yorkshire Dales at the time.
The conservation charity put the covert camera on the moor near a hen harrier roost and it caught Dingwall and two other men at dusk, all carrying shotguns and in camouflage, in October 2024.
The RSPB said the men, often speaking in code, were recorded talking on radio and discussing the best position from which to shoot the birds in the roost.
The RSPB passed on its evidence to police who launched an investigation.
Hen harriers have been designated as Schedule 1 birds, meaning they have even more protection than normal wild birds.
Dingwall admitted encouraging or assisting the killing of a Schedule 1 wild bird, contrary to the Serious Crime Act, and was ordered to pay £1,520 in fines and costs at York Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, NYP said.
The gamekeeper, from Ellingstring, also admitted possessing a shotgun for the purpose of killing a Schedule 1 wild bird.
NYP understood this was the first time that the charge of encouraging or assisting an offence under the Serious Crime Act had been used in relation to bird of prey persecution.
Outside court, Inspector Mark Earnshaw from NYP, said: “The cruel and illegal persecution of hen harriers and other birds of prey is totally unacceptable.
“This outcome at court follows a thorough police investigation, and incontrovertible evidence.
“It should send a strong message to anyone else engaged in this criminality: they will be investigated, identified, and put before the courts to face the consequences of their actions.”
The RSPB said the men were recorded saying any hen harriers that had been tagged with satellite tracking technology should not be shot as this would draw the attention of the authorities.
When the men spotted a tagged hen harrier they expressed frustration and decided not to shoot it, preferring to scare it with warning shots, the charity said.
The RSPB said that the men then noticed an untagged hen harrier and its secret footage showed Dingwall load his gun, him walk towards the roost and a single shot was heard, followed by congratulatory comments.
Shooting birds of prey was “almost undetectable”, the RSPB said as it happened “in remote locations and during unsociable hours, away from public eyes”.
Mark Thomas, RSPB UK head of investigations, believed licensing grouse moors was needed to protect wild birds.
He said: “This landmark conviction has shone a light on this issue, revealing the lengths individuals will go to in order to illegally target these protected birds of prey.
“Shockingly, over 100 hen harriers have been confirmed or suspected to have been illegally killed on or near grouse moors in the UK in just the last five years.
“The RSPB will not rest until the future for this bird is secured and that can only happen with legislative change.
“Government licensing of grouse shooting is now essential to change practices in this sector.”
The RSPB said the tagged bird which was scared away from the roost was called Ataksak.
She was found dead in January 2025 having ingested a toxic mixture of pesticides, known as the Nidderdale cocktail, linked with “numerous” other hen harrier deaths.
The charity said this incident was being investigated by police and that there was no known link with the original prosecution.