Ducks are still commonly killed with lead shot in England despite a ban and voluntary moves by shooting groups, new research shows.
Lead is highly toxic to both humans and wildlife, and using it to kill ducks has been illegal in England since 1999. In 2020, leading shooting organisationsannounced a plan to end the use of lead shot for hunting all live quarry. The British government is due to review legislation on lead ammunition in the coming months.
Born Free Foundation report the Labour government has published details of badger culling licenses that could result in the targeting of almost 40,000 additional badgers in 2024. These culls, across the High-Risk bovine TB area in England, will be in addition to the 230,000 that have been killed since licensed culling was introduced in 2013.
The first ever National Hedgehog Conservation Strategy has been published by leading wildlife charities People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) and The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS).
The strategy has been created in response to trends highlighted in the State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2022 report, also published by BHPS and PTES, which revealed that native hedgehogs have declined by between 30-75% in rural areas since 2000. To tackle this ongoing decline, BHPS and PTES have worked collaboratively with over 30 leading conservation NGOs, academics, educational institutions, hedgehog rehabilitators and organisations within the transport and farming sectors*, to create a topline, national strategy that can guide the change that’s desperately needed.
More on the RPSB website here.
88com reports the amount of land in England effectively protected for nature has plummeted to just 2.93%, according to newly released data, raising alarm among environmental experts. This stark figure casts doubt on the UK government’s commitment to conserve 30% of the country’s land for nature by 2030, a pledge made four years ago under former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Environmental campaigners are urgently calling for a “rapid rescue package” to restore nature, as government officials prepare to attend CoP16, the international summit on biodiversity. The event, set to take place in Colombia later this month, will see UK delegates urging global counterparts to stick to ambitious nature conservation targets. However, domestic progress on this front is faltering.