Concern as licences to kill ravens issued

LICENCES are being issued to allow ravens to be killed in North Wales.

Four licences have been granted by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) since 2016 to cull the birds.

Two have been issued in Denbighshire, one in Gwynedd and one in the Vale of Glamorgan.

They allowed up to 80 birds and a nest to be destroyed, with 54 reported killed, figures under a Freedom of Information (FOI) request revealed.

It has not been disclosed which individuals or organisations applied for the licences.

According to details released as part of the FOI request, the nest was removed for “health and safety” reasons.

Consultant conservationist Rob Sheldon, who put in the FOI request, was worried by the high numbers culled.

“I am concerned that two of the licences seem to have far higher numbers of ravens to be killed than would be expected,” said Mr Sheldon, who has worked for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

“I also think the fact that the killing of a native predator to protect a non-native species – a pheasant – which is being bred so it can be shot for fun, is not acceptable.”

A National Resources Wales spokesman said: “Issuing a licence to kill wild birds will always be a last resort for us, and we’ll only grant it if the applicant can clearly demonstrate there is a need, and that all other options have been exhausted.

“In the case of these licences, it was to prevent damage to their livestock.

“According to legislation, this covers farm animals such as sheep and cows, but also non-native birds such as pheasants if they are being used as part of a game reserve.

“The number of licences we have issued for ravens is very low, and before we gave any permissions we consulted with an ornithologist to make sure that wider populations would not be affected.”