An insightful and humorous account of over 40 years policing a sector of criminal activity about which much of the public and even some police officers are unaware. Salmon, deer and game poachers, and the adventures encountered by each side in trying to outwit the other, are the stuff of folklore.
But there is a serious side to this and the book demonstrates the breadth of wildlife crime, with case studies covering the taking of freshwater pearl mussels, poisoning birds of prey, illegal trapping and snaring, egg collecting, cruelty, crime against bats and much more. It highlights the inadequacies of early wildlife crime legislation and the consequent failures of cases that inevitably resulted in improved legislation in the early part of the 21st century.
"Not quite John Buchan but close [...] the sheer variety of wildlife crime as witnessed by Stewart is remarkable"
– The Herald
"Alan Stewart is the foremost wildlife detective in the country"
– Sporting Rifle Magazine
"[...] straightforward and methodical, as if torn from the pages of his police notebook [...] there are numerous scenes of comedy stemming from criminal incompetence. There are also staggering accounts of animal cruelty"
– Sunday Herald
"Alan Stewart has been a key figure in the fight against wildlife crime [...] I can wholeheartedly recommend this book"
– Shooting and Conservation Magazine (BASC)
"One of the country's leading authorities on wildlife law"
– Press & Journal