Abstract
• The hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) is one of Britain's most alluring birds of prey, and one of the most threatened over parts of its breeding range.
• The SNH financial contribution to this SAF species covered its support of the the Langholm Moor Demonstration Project (LMDP). The LMDP was devised to contribute to the resolution of a long-standing conservation conflict between raptors (including hen harriers) and grouse moor management. It consists of a partnership of Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), Buccleuch Estates (land owner), Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT), Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), and Natural England.
• A seven year report gives preliminary results up to 2014. A full report will be published beyond the end of the project (September 2017) and scientific papers are being prepared for publication.
• The LMDP was launched in September 2007, and in 2008 the project employed five gamekeepers, a project manager and a project scientist. Prior to this, between 2003 and 2007, there were on average only 2.8 pairs of nesting hen harriers and exceptionally low numbers of grouse in the 12,000 ha study area. The work in the LMDP has since 2008 involved a combination of active moorland management (i.e. legal predator control and habitat management), diversionary feeding of hen harriers, and scientific monitoring of a wider range of bird and habitat features.
• Active management of the moor under the LMDP, other than ongoing heather habitat recovery following sheep reductions, ceased in spring 2016, with efforts currently being devoted to writing up the results of the work. The project is due to finish in October 2017.