Aliens on the list

Looking at General Licence 06 (GL06) I was surprised to see Indian house crow and sacred ibis listed. I’ve never heard of either and I wonder why they are on the list.

This is a sensible bit of planning by Natural England. The crow is native to Asia and the ibis to Africa. They are both found in continental Europe, often as the result of releases or escapes, and are regarded as invasive aliens because they have an adverse ecological impact. The intention is that any that arrive should be culled as soon as possible. If you see one, you should inform Natural England, who are keen to keep track of them.

If a similarly enlightened attitude had been taken a few decades ago, we wouldn’t have so many problems with ringneck and monk parakeets, both of which are belatedly on GL06.