A young hen harrier has disappeared from a grouse moor where three golden eagles went missing in the spring, according to conservationists.

The bird of prey, which had settled in the Monadhliath mountains south-east of Inverness, was being monitored under a hen harrier protection project, RSPB Scotland said.

Transmissions from the satellite transmitter it was fitted with "ceased abruptly" on August 3, according to the charity.

The bird, named Elwood, was the only chick to fledge from a nest in Banffshire at the beginning of July.

The RSPB raised concerns last week that three satellite-tagged young eagles had gone "off radar" in the Monadhliaths in recent months, and it has been suggested that illegal persecution is the most likely explanation.

Ian Thomson, RSPB Scotland's head of investigations, said: "The absence of typical breeding raptor species from areas of suitable habitat, or at traditional nesting sites, in large parts of the Monadhliaths is further supporting evidence of a major problem with wildlife crime in this general area.

"It proves, yet again, that despite there being a good number of enlightened estates who are happy to host and protect nesting birds of prey, as soon as they move away from these areas they are being illegally killed.

"The denials and obfuscation from representatives of the land management sector, and their consistent failure to acknowledge and address this problem, is one of the main reasons why our bird of prey populations are struggling in the central and eastern Highlands.

"We repeat our call to the Scottish Government to introduce a robust system of licensing of game bird hunting, where the right to shoot is dependent on legal and sustainable management of the land, in line with approaches adopted in most other European countries."

The Scottish Government has ordered a review of satellite tracking data to establish whether there is suspicious activity on or near grouse moors where birds have disappeared.

Tim Baynes, director of the Scottish Moorland Group, said: "We are as concerned as anyone when a satellite-tagged bird goes missing and particularly in this case because the bird was part of a project involving Scottish Land and Estates and our members.

"This bird was tagged on one of our member estates as part of the Heads Up For Harriers project. We are contacting our partners in the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW Scotland) to find out more.

"Estates in the area where the bird went missing are also concerned but have not been approached by RSPB to help in any search.

"They are unaware of any incident and would be willing to help. We would ask anyone with further information on this to contact Scottish Land and Estates or PAW Scotland."