Thank you for emailing Nicola Sturgeon

Yesterday evening we sent out a newsletter asking our supporters to email Nicola Sturgeon about the scale of wildlife crime in Scotland, exemplified by the poisoning of this young White-tailed Eagle that was found on a grouse moor inside the Cairngorms National Park.

The response has been amazing so we thought we’d post a few examples here.

Have a look at the examples below and please add your own voice. Tell Ms Sturgeon how you felt when you saw the image above. Ask her to act now. You don’t have to send a long email, or a clever email, or a learned email – just speak from the heart. And you don’t have to be Scottish or to live in Scotland.

If you are prepared to send a polite, but firm, email to Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland, then this is her email address; firstminister@gov.scot

Thank you!

Here are half a dozen examples of emails sent already – six of the most recent so they are at the top of our inbox – we’ll post more examples later today:

Dear First Minister,
Whilst I appreciate that you and our government are working flat out to manage the current situation, I wanted to bring to your attention the fact that the killing of wild birds of prey is obviously still happening in Scotland.
A young White Tailed Eagle which was satellite tagged for scientific research has been found poisoned in Strathdon, Cairngorms National Park.
How much longer are we going to allow people to carry out this cruel practice for monetary gain?
Under the Scottish Government we think of ourselves as a progressive, just society. Surely the killing of wild creatures anywhere let alone in our national parks flies in the face of this view. The fact the bird was found on a grouse shooting area lends suspicion to the idea it was poisoned on purpose to stop it predating creatures that some humans want to shoot for their own pleasure. When you break down the arguments surely the practice will be seen as unacceptable by the majority of decent folk and abhorrent by many.
At this pivotal moment in the way we view our place in the world, I urge you to take another look at the issue of protection of these birds and whether the Parliament think it right that a few landowners or wealthy citizens can control our wild areas for their own gain rather than reinstating the natural world. This is indeed an opportunity to show the world we really are a progressive fair society which does the right thing.
I appreciate your time considering this issue.
Many thanks and best wishes,

Stirling

I don’t live in Scotland, but regularly visit and have friends who have moved there recently. Seeing this photo of a poisoned white tailed eagle found dead in the Cairngorms – it doesn’t matter where you live – this sight is deeply sad. You have an opportunity to lead the rest of the world in stamping out these horrible acts of cruelty driven perhaps by the barbaric so called sport of grouse hunting – that is where you can take a stance – breeding birds to kill is morally wrong surely? I want my legacy to be that I made a lasting positive difference to our animal kingdom – my feelings are so strong that I even believe that our planet would be so much better without us humans – that may sound extreme so instead can we live as nature intended in harmony and find the true reasons and stamp that out? If anyone can  – you can.

I have just seen an image of a young dead, White-tailed Eagle. It was  found in the Cairngorms National Park, Scotland.  It had been poisoned.This is shocking and sickening.
To think that this happened in an area where there is driven grouse shooting is a further indication that criminal activity goes hand in hand with the shooting fraternity.It should make Scotland feel ashamed and indeed many people will be turned against her. It is high time driven grouse shooting was banned. Those who engage in it believe themselves to be above the law and indeed, get away with these crimes time and time again because the shooting industry is governed by those who put wealth above all else and seem to walk arm in arm with politicians for protection.
Please take action now and put an end to the persecution of wildlife by those in pursuit of profit out of those who enjoy killing. Supporting blood sports is not a good image for Scotland. She has beautiful scenery and wildlife to attract tourists. Allowing its wildlife to be persecuted will only drive them away.

Dear First Minister and Cabinet Secretary We are writing to express our extreme disappointment at the news of yet another bird of prey dying in suspicious circumstances in the Cairngorms National Park. We wonder whether the Scottish government is taking seriously the message that this sends to all of those who enjoy wildlife in this country. We visit Scotland on holiday fairly regularly, specifically to enjoy it’s natural beauty and iconic wildlife. This sickening assault on an incredibly valuable attraction makes us question whether we wish to return. Unsurprisingly, a lot of this criminal activity appears to be focused around driven grouse moors. Is it time to consider banning these, or at the very least licensing/policing their activities? We feel the Police are under-resourced in this area, and when perpetrators are caught, the punishments do not fit the crime. There does not appear to be much deterrent. We would appreciate this being looked at again, with more action taken, as things cannot continue as they have been. Yours sincerely

Dear Nicola Sturgeon,
In almost every respect the Scottish government has shown itself, under your excellent leadership, to be humane, efficient and intelligent.  However, the grouse moors of Scotland have been the location of illegal and cruel practices, which have involved the mass shooting of mountain hares and now the poisoning of eagles and other precious wildlife in Strathdon, Cairngorms National Park.
Police Scotland said: “As well as being illegal, poisoning is a cruel way to kill a bird. It also puts the lives of other creatures and plants at risk and impacts negatively on our environment.”
My daughter lives in Scotland and although I am an Italian mother living in England and miss her badly, I am consoled by knowing that the quality of her life has greatly improved since her move to live and work in Scotland.  I understand people in Scotland love hill-walking and are rightly proud of the natural beauty of the breathtaking Scottish landscape.  But the balance of nature is precarious and the mass killing of wildlife, including the poisoning of eagles, by people involved in the highly profitable grouse-shooting industry is affecting the balance of Scottish nature.  The coronavirus pandemic has surely shown us that we must not exploit wildlife for cultural or monetary reasons because nature will strive to redress this imbalance in ways which may be dangerous to humans as well as animals.  How we treat our wildlife is a measure of our humanity and if the laws which are intended to protect wildlife are not effective, then please consider legislating to protect our precious and fragile wild animals.  Laws could be passed to ban driven grouse shooting or to licence all shooting of wildlife, the police could be given more resources and encouragement to pursue and prosecute illegal practices.  
I appreciate that Scotland probably does not want to be lectured by a woman living in England, but the protection of wildlife is a global issue.  Wildlife has so little power to protect itself, people must watch over the welfare of animals with compassion, wisdom and imagination so that they can live the free, healthy lives they deserve and not experience unnecessary cruelty or suffering.  If this cruelty is led by a profitable industry founded on the mass killing of animals for sport, then laws need to be rigorously passed and implemented and police need to be given powers, resources and support.  Whatever we mean by ‘The Balance of Nature’ we know we human beings are not doing well on that front at the moment, so please use all of your intelligence, courage and thoughtfulness to protect our fragile wildlife – and particularly the eagles currently being poisoned on the grouse moors of Strathdon.
Thank you,

Today I learnt of yet another horrific poisoning of our precious and protected wildlife heritage, a rare juvenile White Tailed Eagle. It appears this bird was discovered dead because it was fitted with a satellite tracking device, a device fitted to allow a degree of security to be afforded to protect and study this rare animal. The eagle was found at Strathdon, an area of grouse moors, within the Cairngorms National Park, so it is more than certain that this bird was killed by someone involved in the shooting and game industry. I appeal to you to put a stop once and for all to the persecution of birds of prey as a result of a most questionable practise in this day and age, namely grouse shooting, which leads to gamekeepers poisoning eagles, harriers, falcons and hawks to preserve the grouse that will ironically be shot as sport by people who put their ‘sporting’ practise above the practise many tens of thousands people enjoy – simply enjoying the amazing spectacle of Scottish wild places and the incredible animals that live there. Please take notice of the outrage I and many many people feel at the seemingly never ending blind eye that is turned towards the shooting establishment. In other parts of the world, namely Africa, practises of shooting wildlife for sport has been driven out and replaced by people paying good revenues to governments to simply visit a national park to watch and photograph stunning wildlife. When is this government going to wake up and challenge the perverse and outdated practises of hunting and shooting and get on with promoting the idea to land owners to stop killing everything and promote their wildlife and wild places for tourism. Above all, bring these criminals – who poison our flagship wildlife heritage to death in the name of keeping their employers profits high – to justice so we may build a momentum to radically change and see the back of this outdated and barbaric so called sport. Yours sincerely,