A DUMFRIES and Galloway man has become the first in Scotland to be convicted of killing raptors and other wild birds.
Barry Nicolle, of Wickerty Snook, Springholm, confessed to 14 charges at Dumfries Sheriff Court on Wednesday.
The court heard how the 67-year-old had contaminated bait with banned poisonous substance Aldicarb and Bendiocarb which led to the deaths of 15 birds, including five red kites, mallard ducks and rooks, between 2019 and 2020.
The birds were recovered within a mile radius of Nicolle’s address, some just a few hundred yards from his property.
Nicolle did this in an attempt to protect his own private exotic collection.
After his guilty plea, sheriff Kevin McCallum deferred Nicolle’s sentencing until May 19 for the court to obtain a criminal justice social work report.
Following the conviction, wildlife officer and police constable John Cowan, pictured, said: “Extensive policing work involving a number of partners, along with forensic science, enabled us to build a case against Nicolle who had been killing protected birds over a number of years.
“Not only was there a risk to the rural environment, but also to members of the public handling poisoned birds some of which were found near a primary school.
“Police Scotland and the partners we work with treat all types of wildlife crime very seriously and this conviction is a strong message that those who poison wild and protected birds will be robustly investigated.
“I would also like to thank the public who provided information that assisted our enquiries. This is vital to our work in combatting wildlife crime.
“I would encourage anyone who comes across a protected dead bird or animal to report it to us. Likewise if you have information about wildlife crime please get in touch via 101.”
