The demand for elite falcons in the Middle East is driving an illegal trade of British birds, according to an investigation by the Guardian and Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ). The trade is fueled by a shadow industry of smuggling and illegal capture of wild birds, with some of these birds ending up in the Middle East after being issued with fabricated documents. The investigation reveals a troubling pattern of peregrine falcon chicks disappearing from remote cliff ledges and treetop nests in the UK, only to later be found in the Middle East. Conservationists and police report that these chicks are being taken from the wild and sold to falconers in the Middle East, who want wild birds for racing. The demand for British birds has driven soaring exports, with 4,000 peregrine or peregrine hybrids exported from the UK to the Middle East last year, and 5,000 this year. The most valuable falcon for export is the gyr peregrine, which has a peregrine falcon as the mother and gyr falcon as the father. The female offspring are infertile, which is why there is high demand for female peregrine falcons in breeding facilities. DNA techniques prove that some of these birds are wild caught, and police have identified at least some that are. The investigation also found that there are about 160 breeding facilities in the UK, up from about 27 in the 1980s, all of which have links to the Middle East. The Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition is a hub for this illegal trade, where traders openly discuss their desire for wild-caught birds, despite the practice being illegal. The investigation highlights the threat posed by greed, with wild peregrine falcons being taken from the wild and kept in captivity, rarely flying and treated like battery chickens. The population of peregrine falcons in the UK is now classed as stable, but some areas are more targeted than others, with a decline in peregrine falcons being reported in certain regions. The illegal trade of British birds is a complex issue, driven by the demand for elite falcons in the Middle East and fueled by a shadow industry of smuggling and illegal capture of wild birds.
