I'd really appreciate some feedback from the RSPB folk on this one, though of course everyone else is welcome to weigh in too :)
I've seen discussions on this subject cropping up on various different birding and photography forums, and Lepidoptera recently raised it here with regard to Kingfishers. I would like to know if there's any clarification about whether it's OK to photograph Schedule 1 birds 'at or near the nest' when you're doing it from a hide on a nature reserve. The Schedule 1 list can be viewed here: http://www.naturenet.net/law/sched1.html
The licencing is aimed at experienced photographers who want to create independent setups to photograph these vulnerable species at their nests. Applicants will need to demonstrate their ability to achieve this without causing disturbance by submitting images of non-Schedule 1 species photographed under similar circumstances, exhibiting normal breeding behaviour. It's a tough system, as is right and proper to protect the wellbeing of the birds.
But... what about Schedule 1 birds that choose to nest where anyone can easily view them without disturbance? There are quite a few RSPB reserves now where numerous nesting Avocets can be viewed at close range from hides. Likewise Mediterranean Gulls at Rye Harbour nature reserve, Ospreys at Loch Garten and so on. Given that the purpose of the law is to prevent disturbance, it seems vanishingly unlikely that anyone's going to get into trouble for photographing them under these circumstances, and you certainly don't see anyone confiscating visitors' cameras as they enter the hides :) However, is this a matter of interpretation of the law, or is there some specific clause which says 'at or near the nest' photography from a public place or place with public access is OK?
Further update which I'm passing on on behalf of our licencing expert: our web team have been asked to remove the rather misleading advice on the FAQ page that appears to have prompted the confusion about the need for licences to photograph Schedule 1 birds in ALL cases (see above for my hopefully useful explanation of the in's and out's of photographing Schedule 1 birds from public hides).
A more complete explanation of the terms of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 is contained in a different place on our website - please visit http://www.rspb.org.uk/ourwork/policy/wildbirdslaw/birdsandlaw/wca/index.asp for more info.
So apologies (especially to Bustard) for any confusion we managed to create.
Best wishes,
Colin
Hello.
I've read the replies below and to be honest the amount of misinformation is absolutely staggering.
For a start, it is NOT illegal to take images of Schedule 1 birds, even if they are at the nest.
It is, however, illegal to take these images if you cannot avoid disturbing these birds.
The position of the Government should be all that matters, to be honest. It says that:
'You may need a licence if you can’t avoid disturbing protected birds and animals to survey, film or photograph them'- Natural England
I've increasingly been aware of a lot of people taking this rule one step too far and attempting to enforce a law which does not exist- in their beliefs photographing Schedule 1 birds in the breeding season is illegal altogether. A lot of photographers have come under attack on sites like BirdForum for even saying they wanted to take pictures of goshawks. Several birders tried to convince me that it is illegal to take images of S1 birds at all. In July last year I received an aggressive letter from a conservation agency demanding I immediately pay for a license to take pictures of barn owls at a local site given it is 'illegal' to do so without it, and they didn't even let up when I proved otherwise. Birdguides recently began enforcing a law forbidding anyone to share images of S1 birds in the breeding season.
All of the above, quite frankly, is absurd.
It is NOT illegal to photograph birds even at the nest, even S1 birds, but it does become illegal if you disturb them. Simple proof of this is so many photographs of these things existing on the internet, which aren't taken down and nobody fined.
Last year I did my photography at two well-known peregrine eyries. On one occasion the nest is on a balcony about 5 meters above the road and it is simply impossible to disturb the birds. In fact, the only time I've ever seen the birds disturbed here was when an incredibly loud motorbike passed under the nest. On the other occasion I kept a distance of more than 50 meters from the eyrie and had a nice evening taking pictures of the young which were flying all over the place. None of this is illegal. But it would have been had I disturbed them.
People when taking images of any bird should keep in mind their welfare above everything. Taking images at a nature reserve from trails, hides and stuff? Perfectly legal even if a golden oriole is in front of you. Smashing through a reedbed looking for a bittern nest? That's illegal.
Nature reserves sometimes close down area to prevent disturbance to S1 birds. In these situations people should be calm that you can take images of as many S1 nests, chicks, and adults as you like as long as you don't access the restricted area, given that the areas are made off-limits with the law in mind. As such, despite the fact that I know the exact location of the crane nest at Lakenheath, I'll keep my observations to the public footpath so that I don't disturb the birds.
What I have seen on websites is how the attitude to photography has been changing. At first nobody would say a thing to you if you asked where to see barn owls. Later on, people on the internet began pleading not to search for birds, eg golden orioles at Thetford Forest. And later on, you had a real chance of being driven off a birding site if you asked where to see the birds. This overprotective nature is completely unnecessary and leads to a lot of people being disturbed in the nature community. This isn't relevant to birds, but I remember a situation in which an appeal was made to the city council to deal with me, only because I was collecting fungi from a place known for Chicken of the Woods.
If it was illegal to take images of S1 birds in the breeding season, all of these images would be illegal:
But they are perfectly legal- featured on many sites. As it, the bittern one is from the mere hide, the WTE one was done with reserve personnel sitting right next to me, the second bittern one is from a hide, the stone curlew one is from Weeting Heath hide, and the two peregrine ones are from Cambridge city center when both me and them were meters away from a busy road.
These popular claims that taking pictures of S1 birds in the breeding season, especially their nests and young, is illegal is unfortunately absurd and dirty misinformation. It is illegal only if you DISTURB the birds. My advice to photographers is follow the guidelines laid out on the Government website and avoid websites made by cranks claiming licenses are required to, for example, take images of kingfishers near the nest. Well, the Kingfisher Hide at WWT Slimbridge provides visitors with exactly these views.
Basically the requirement by law and government is: if you don't disturb the birds, take as much S1 images as you like.
www.rspb.org.uk/.../ www.legislation.gov.uk/.../69
Some links about the wildlife and countryside act 1981. Also any amendments to the law since 1981 as well as the act in Scotland is different in certain areas.
www.rspb.org.uk/.../
This is a list of the different schedules of the birds in England and Wales as well as Scotland. I don’t know how up-to-date this list is. But this on the RSPB website