I recently came across a situation where pied wagtails were roosting on an industrial site in England and were getting trapped in an area that had been enclosed by anti-pigeon netting. A number of dead wagtails were found. This was not the intention of the company concerned and they are now taking steps to address the problem. However I was wondering - given the pied wagtail's prediliction for communal roosting on buildings - whether this problem has been encountered elsewhere and if so how frequently.
I was also wondering what the legal position is. My understanding is that in England and Wales it is an offence to kill a wild bird intentionally so - as there was no intention here - an offence has presumably not occurred, however unfortunate the situation. In Scotland I believe it is an offence to kill a wild bird either intentionally or recklessly and I suppose it could be argued that it would be reckless to maintain the netting in the scenario described above,knowing that it is likely to trap and kill pied wagails. Is this a correct summary of the relevant law or is there something else I am missing?
Jonathan Wallace
Hi,
Your interpretation of the law is right, no offence has been committed. I haven't heard of this happening before but on reflection it's perhaps not surprising that wild birds occasionally get caught up or trapped. It's good to hear the company involved is taking steps to remedy the situation.
Cheers
Colin
Hi Jonathan,
Welcome to the forum.
I can't help with the legalities, but was simply wondering how they became trapped. If they got in, why couldn't they get out?
Cheers, Linda.
See my photos on Flickr
Hi Sparrow
Thanks for the welcome! In answer to your question I suppose its similar to the lobster pot principle - its sometimes easier to get out than to get in. Basically I think its probably because the birds have a tendency to fly upwards and towards the light but in this case that wasn't the way to safety. Most of the birds obviously did manage to get out OK but not all...
Thanks Jonathan. I hope the situation can be resolved.