15th March 2012
Publication of the Defra report ‘Determining the Extent of Use and Humanness of Snares in England and Wales’
The Moorland Association is delighted to note that, in his statement today, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Natural Environment and Fisheries, Richard Benyon, recognises the importance of snares for wildlife management.
Snaring plays a very important part in conservation, but The Moorland Association is very concerned about the real animal welfare issues raised in the report. We look forward to being fully involved with this consultation to ensure that all concerns are properly addressed and any poor practice on grouse moors in England and Wales is eliminated.
In upland areas, snares are crucial in the control of the number of foxes predating on red grouse which nest on the ground and the Defra report found that when done correctly, the snaring of foxes meets all the requirements of the Agreement on International Humane Trapping Standards.
Snaring foxes also helps to protect other important moorland ground nesting birds such as lapwing, curlew, merlin, and golden plover. Grouse moors have up to five times as many ground nesting waders compared to moors not managed for red grouse, and it is because of predator control that these birds have a 3.5 times better chance of fledging their chicks.
