This report provides a summary of responses to the public call for evidence undertaken by Natural England in 2022 as part of its review of ‘wild take’ licensing, a practice involving the taking of birds of prey from the wild for use in falconry and aviculture.
The call used an online questionnaire survey design with both qualitative and quantitative elements and encouraged respondents to submit evidence to support their views. Topics and questions were developed with input from stakeholders. 143 responses were received, including 93 individual responses and 22 organisational responses.
Analysis identified variation in the responses of falconers/aviculturists to questions regarding their interest in obtaining wild take licences and differing views on whether wild take is integral to the practice of falconry, whether sourcing birds via captive stocks is a satisfactory alternative, whether there are behavioural differences between captive and wild birds, and how licensed wild take might impact on public perceptions of the sport. Non-falconer/aviculturist responses were more uniform. These groups were largely opposed to wild take licensing and had concerns regarding the potential impacts on bird welfare, species conservation, and on links with the illegal wildlife trade.
There was widespread support across the different respondent types for efforts to safeguard the welfare of captive birds and to improve the management of existing captive stocks via coordinated studbooks.
The results of the call have been combined with other evidence gathered for the review, to inform Natural England’s advice to Defra on the future of wild take licensing in England.