Sorting the facts
from RSPB fiction
Glynn Evans
The RSPB continue to ignore the available evidence and importance of shooting to conservation, the economy, and mental health and wellbeing, by openly campaigning for a nationwide moratorium on releasing gamebirds, says BASC’s Glynn Evans.
The RSPB’s recommendation of a moratorium is made the basis of a precautionary approach to limit the spread of avian influenza in wild birds. However, the evidence and current situation with High Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in both kept and wild birds shows that cases have been falling since the end of 2022.
The RSPB seems unable to understand that gamebird release underpins the viability of most shoots. Without these shoots, all the associated benefits to the economy, local communities, and not least the thousands of hours of crucial conservation work that benefit the very birds the RSPB, BASC, and others, want to see flourish, would be lost.
Also, the call for a moratorium at this point in time fails to recognise that production of stock for release this year is well underway; what would the RSPB proposes happens to them?
Addressing the issues
In the RSPB’s blog they make certain claims which warrant addressing.
They highlight that “Following the lifting of the housing order in England and Wales (which required poultry to be kept inside) gamebirds are now permitted to be released across the country, with the exception of temporary 3km and 10km disease control zones put in place following an outbreak in captive birds”, but then suggest that these restrictions don’t go far enough.
This is indeed correct, but there seems to be a fundamental misunderstanding by the RSPB regarding the lifting of control measures.
Implementation or lifting of any control measures, such as housing orders and Avian Influenza Prevention Zones (AIPZs) which remain in force, are based on evidence and established policy. They are only lifted when the evidence means it appropriate to do so.
Defra risk assessments
The RSPB point to a Defra risk assessment in relation to spread of AI from released pheasants, which identified a high risk.
However, they fail to mention that the conclusions drawn were made with a high degree of uncertainty and that if AI were to remain a serious issue in 2023, then a new risk assessment should be completed before any action was taken.
Also worthy of mention, but something which is omitted by the RSPB perhaps because it doesn’t fit the narrative, is that a subsequent risk assessment produced in relation to catching up of gamebirds (from the wild) was completed. Thes risk assessment suggested that with up to 1,000 shoots catching up pheasants across Great Britain, the probability of this leading to one or more new infected premises (the term used with captive birds) was very high. However, there was not a single case as a result.
Transmission to wild birds
In their blog, RSPB highlight that “As symptoms can take several days to develop[,] infected birds may not be spotted before being released”.
In reality, there have been no confirmed cases of wild birds being infected with HPAI due to contact with infected gamebirds. Due to the way that gamebirds are carefully managed during and before releasing, it is extremely difficult to see how any birds could be infected and subsequently released.
The RSPB went on to claim that “Feeding sites attract wild birds promoting infection and transmission and infected gamebird carcasses can transmit infection to raptors and other scavengers.”
For much of last year, and still remaining in force, are AIPZs such as the one in England. These include specific requirements around feeding to restrict access by wild birds. This requirement applies equally to kept gamebirds as it does to other species of birds when kept.
Aggregating wild birds around a feeding site will present risk of transmission, but birds are known to aggregate while roosting and migrating. The benefits of winter feeding has been proven to help survival rates in many farmland birds. It is recommended for many bird species by several different organisations, including it seems the RSPB.
GL43 and last year's moratorium call
The RSPB proceeded to claim that “last week Natural England announced restrictions on releasing gamebirds on or near to protected areas to reduce the avian influenza risk to birds of conservation concern breeding on these sites.”
BASC is involved with ongoing discussions with Defra regarding the reissuing of GL43 for the coming year. This is a general licence which covers the release of pheasants and red legged partridges on or within 500 metres of European Protected Sites.
We been made aware of Defra’s intention to restrict the use this licence on certain sites. We do not feel this is appropriate as no evidence to justify it has been provided and we will be looking into the validity of this potential development.
RSPB highlighted that they called for a moratorium on gamebird releases last year which went “un-heeded”. As discussed in ‘RSPB ignoring the evidence over gamebird release‘, their reasoning for such a move was again without evidence, and came after the main releasing months had already passed.
The charity’s call for “an immediate moratorium on the release of captive bred gamebirds and mallards for shooting in the UK this year”, is similarly unfounded. There is a fundamental lack of understanding of gamebird release and shooting, and how tackling AI is undertaken by governments.
BASC has been heavily engaged with Defra and the devolved administrations’ decision-making processes throughout the AI outbreak.
BASC has worked, and will continue to work, to ensure shooting is not restricted disproportionately to other land uses and continues to support the science on how best to combat AI.
For the second year running, the RSPB are ignoring the available evidence around AI. Their approach shows a catastrophic lack of understanding of how AI works.
Any action taken must be led by evidence and not emotive whims. It would be misguided and wrong, but also economically, socially, and ecologically dangerous, to use shooting as a scapegoat just because it is convenient to do so.
BASC, and indeed the wider shooting community, has played its part in tackling AI and will continue to do so.
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