20:00 30 March 2015

John Grant

Hen harrier chicks at a nest - the species has become a symbol of UK bird of prey protection efforts.

A top naturalist and TV presenter really got to the art of the matter in his fight against illegal bird and animal persecution - and used a Constable masterpiece to make his point

Chris Packhams anger had been simmering throughout his keynote address to a conference on illegal wildlife persecution in the UK and it exploded in a frenzied finale as he destroyed a copy of perhaps the most famous painting ever to depict a Suffolk scene.

A mysterious, shrouded easel had been placed in front of conference delegates and the gathered campaigners were at first baffled, then bemused and finally inspired.

Naturalist and TV presenter Packham deftly removed the shroud to reveal a copy of John Constables 1821 masterpiece The Hay Wain.

Ominously, out came the cans of spray paint. The scene near Flatford was too cluttered, said Packham, as he obliterated the famous cart and much of the rest of the work in a blur of orange, black and blue.

Then, menacingly, out came the knife. The canvass was slashed time and again before a final flourish what was left of the work was smashed with all Packhams might onto the floor.

It was a dramatic way to get a point across, but it left delegates at the Eyes in the Field conference organised by the burgeoning Birders Against Wildlife Crime movement in no doubt about Packhams passion, even if some were clearly stunned by the performance. Representatives of the Suffolk-based Campaign Against Raptor Persecution were at the meeting in Buxton, Derbyshire, along with nature conservationists from many organisations from across Britain.

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Gallery: Chris Packham canvasses support to get wildlife crime on the wane