BBC Springwatch: Chris Packham SHOCKED by KILLER SHEEP posing deadly threat to wildlife
Even lambs can cause devastation, with shocking footage on the BBC flagship nature programme showing them trampling the nests of red-listed species. Viewers have been left spellbound by gripping scenes of a lapwing trying to save its eggs from being smashed by a curious lamb to no avail. While gambolling lambs are an accidental risk, scenes of sheep tucking into the eggs of a curlew have left Springwatch presenter Chris Packham astounded. The plight of the curlew, famed for it long bill and haunting song, has become one of the British conservation issues of the age with numbers down by 65 per cent in recent decades. Environmental action plans are in place to help its recovery.
GETTY[STOCK IMAGE] Scenes of sheep tucking into the eggs of a curlew have left Springwatch Chris Packham astonished
Let’s be clear, these are herbivores, they are not going out nest hunting Chris Packham
Yet while expanding forests, drying soils and overgrazing are putting this upland bird in jeopardy, incredible footage showing a sheep feasting on curlew eggs puts another question mark over the bird’s future, especially when the last 68,000 pairs share the countryside with 33 million ewes. A short clip from the researchers at the University of East Anglia working the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds showing a sheep eating curlew eggs was aired on the latest edition of Springwatch, sparking a heated conservation debate online about the risks of farming to the countryside. Explaining possible reasons for the sheep eating curlew eggs, presenter Chris Packham told viewers: “Let’s be clear, these are herbivores, they are not going out nest hunting. "What we think is happening is that sheep are coming across these nests and there is some nutrient deficiency in their diet, it may be calcium in the egg shells, and this is leading them to eat them.