2022

Last month I had an inkling of what would be imposed on the Morlais Valley Wildfowlers by Natural Resources Wales, but now I know. The words “death by a thousand cuts” come to mind.

The GWCT Advisory team are running several essential courses for game and wildlife managers in the first part of 2023. Our courses are highly practical, with a focus on hands-on learning and real-world application. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from experts in the field and gain valuable skills and knowledge that they can apply in their work.

Defra has published a risk assessment focussing on the risks of transmission of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) from released gamebirds to wild birds during the summer 2022 period when HPAI was at unprecedented levels in captive and wild birds.

Our experienced Advisory team are planning to run eight predation management courses for gamekeepers and wildlife managers across England and Wales throughout February and March in 2023.

You would think that there would be a single term to describe the removal of surface vegetation such as scrub, heather and grasses using fire. But this is not the case. There are regional terms, legislative terms and then just plainly incorrect terms resulting in nine possible descriptors for a single practice.

With the start of the muirburn season (1st October – 15th April) now upon us, many upland farms and estates across Scotland will be watching the weather forecast with a close eye and view to burning.

The National Gamekeepers Organisation recently visited GWCT HQ in Hampshire to talk to our Senior Advisor Mike Swan and Head of Predation Control Studies Mike Short about the use of humane cable restraints. Watch what they had to say here.

We have two important courses taking place in September and October at the GWCT Allerton Project in Leicestershire. Both courses have very limited places available.

Following a number of detections of avian influenza in poultry and wild and captive birds across Devon, Cornwall and parts of Somerset, the UK’s Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer has declared an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) across the region to mitigate the risk of further outbreaks of disease occurring.

Another year of “stubbornly static”, and in some cases rising, rodenticide residues in barn owls has prompted an uncomfortable question about the use of poison baits: could irresponsible practices by a delinquent minority restrict future pest control options for the responsible majority?