Wildcat legislation note for keepers of gamebird pens and poultry

This is standing advice to help smallholders and land managers such as gamekeepers and farmers avoid breaking the law when carrying out their day-to-day activities, particularly during the wildcat peak breeding season (April-August inclusive) when wildcats have dependent young or when landowners are experiencing depredation by wildcats of livestock, such as gamebirds or poultry. This page is not advice for activities relating to forestry, which are covered separately on the Scottish Forestry site: Forest operations and wildcats in Scotland.

Legal protection for wildcats

There is no change to the protection of European Protected Species (EPS) as a result of EU Exit.

Wildcats are classed as EPS under the Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994 (as amended). It is therefore an offence to deliberately or recklessly:

• kill, injure, capture or harass a wildcat;
• disturb a wildcat in a den or other structure or place it uses for shelter or protection, or while it is rearing or otherwise caring for its young, or in any way that impairs its ability to survive or breed, or significantly affects the local distribution or abundance of wildcats;
• obstruct access to a wildcat breeding site or resting place, or otherwise prevent their use.

And whether or not deliberate or reckless:

• to damage or destroy a wildcat breeding site or resting place.

It is also an offence to keep, transport, sell or exchange, or offer for sale or exchange any wildcat (or any part or derivative of one) obtained after 10 June 1994

When European Protected Species such as wildcat are present, licences to permit activities that will affect them can only be granted subject to three strict tests being met. These are:

• Test 1. There must be a licensable purpose. Read European Protected Species Licensing: Test 1 – Licensable purpose
• Test 2. There must be no satisfactory alternative. European Protected Species Licensing: Test 2 – No satisfactory alternative
• Test 3. The proposed action must not be detrimental to maintaining the species at ‘favourable conservation status’.

The standard required for Test 1 to be met are high. Purposes include preserving public health or public safety or other imperative reasons of overriding public interest. Wildcats are Critically Endangered. Therefore, many of the actions that would require a licence to avoid an offence being committed are likely to be detrimental to their favourable conservation status. While each licence application is judged on its own merits, any negative impacts of wildcats on land managers or small holders as detailed above (e.g. the predation of poultry) are unlikely to meet Test 1 and any activities proposed under licence to remove these impacts may not meet Test 3. 

Types of land management activity that could cause an offence include the killing of a wildcat during predator control, the disturbance of a wildcat resting or denning with kittens and trapping and removing wildcats that are predating on poultry, pheasants, partridge or other gamebirds.

• Follow this guidance to avoid killing of wildcats during predator control. Note that our guidance on identifying wildcats has been updated recently.
• Follow this guidance to avoid reckless injury or capture of wildcats during live-trapping of other species. 

Avoidance and mitigation

Any land manager or smallholder experiencing impacts from wildcats should always explore alternative actions that don’t require a licence to mitigate the issue (i.e. a ‘satisfactory alternative’). There will be parallels with other protected carnivores such as pine marten when considering management and mitigation. Alternatives actions could include:

Ensure that the poultry or gamebirds are adequately secured

Keep poultry and gamebirds protected in predator-proof pens, especially at night. A pen that is constructed to prevent other aerial and terrestrial predators gaining access may also protect against wildcats or other wild-living cats. Guidance is available online on predator-proof construction such as:

• The Vincent Wildlife Trust: guidance on protecting poultry and gamebirds from pine marten.
• BASC: How to create a pen that meets The Code of Good Shooting Practice’s requirements
• GWCT: Making the perfect Pheasant Release Pen - Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust

However, a very persistent wildcat may get past even a well-constructed fence. The following design has been found to stop persistent wildcats in other situations:

• Fence 2.4m in height, with
  • 50mm heavy duty (anti-dig) mesh from ground level to 1.2m height
  • Deer mesh from 1.2-2.4m covered with an additional 2.5mm mesh.
• Electric wires consisting of
  • 2x wires at top of fence 30cm apart set out 50-75mm from the fence
  • 1x wire at approx. 1.2 – 1.4m height set out 50-75mm from fence
  • Multiple wires down and around all strainer posts. Insulators set out at 50-75mm and 100mm from post
  • Multiple electric wires at the top of any gates, set out 50-75mm from the mesh.

Prevent the pen being occupied by wildcats prior to use

Avoiding the situation where a wildcat is inside the pen will save you considerable effort in the long-run and will help secure your birds from other predators.

• Plan ahead so that you are aware of wildcat presence in the area before bringing pheasants or partridges in. For example, when pens are not in use, close them up to avoid them being occupied by a wildcat. Ensure when closing the pen that it is not already occupied by a wildcat, e.g. by using thermal imaging or by closing all but one entrance to the pen and then monitoring that with a trail camera. If you close the pen within the wildcat breeding season (usually Apr-Aug) as above, then we recommend monitoring with a trail camera of adequate coverage of the pen interior over at least seven days. However, we strongly recommend that you close the pen well in advance of the breeding season.
• Transfer of pheasant poults to their release pens falls within the main wildcat breeding period. If wildcats are known to be in the area then where pheasant pens have not been closed up, the pens should be monitored for a minimum of 14 days using trail cameras giving satisfactory coverage of the pen interior prior to transferring the poults. This should be carried out to ensure no females with dependant young are present in the pens.
• Look to create alternative denning structures of habitats (e.g. brash piles, cairns or small areas of scrub or windthrown trees) a distance (ideally over 200m) away from the pheasant pen area to encourage wildcats to use those instead of any in and around the pen.
• Maintain mitigating measures and human activity around the pheasant pen area, especially during Feb-Mar, so that females looking for sites to give birth are aware that the pen area isn’t suitable for denning.

Minimise impacts on gamebirds 

• Consider getting pheasant poults in as early as possible so that the birds are larger and more experienced when faced with peak predation risk, e.g. from wildcat mothers with kittens or from young carnivores looking to target easy prey.
• Once gamebirds are released, consider approaches such as approved chemical, sonic or visual deterrents to temporarily keep wildcats away from critical areas used by the gamebirds. If sonic or visual deterrents are being used their position should be regularly moved in order to avoid habituation and therefore loss of their effectiveness. Diversionary feeding may work under some circumstances but is currently untested. Retaining rabbit populations, a preferred prey species, may also help reduce predation on gamebirds / poultry.

Minimise risks to wildcats during the game drive

During a driven game bird shoot, risks to wildcats may include injury by dogs, disturbance of denning females and/or separation of late season kittens (August-October). Wildcats can den with kittens in structures or areas that provide cover, such as brash piles, wind-thrown trees, areas with rabbits burrows and dense patches of scrub such as gorse / juniper. Many of these are also areas favoured by pheasants. However, most pheasant and partridge  shoots will take place outside the main breeding season (April-August). Nevertheless, be aware of the risks to kittens and follow the advice below.

• If a wildcat is seen during ‘dogging in’ operations, give it space to move off and do not allow the dogs to harass or chase it.
• If a wildcat is seen while beating on the shoot day, temporarily hold the line to give it the opportunity to move back through the line of beaters or allow it to go forward unimpeded, whilst radioing ahead to the line of guns and pickers up to make them aware of its presence and that it may go past their positions. Again, do not allow the dogs to harass or chase it.
• If a wildcat with kittens is seen during ‘dogging in’ operations or during a shoot, you should act immediately to minimise the risk of disturbance by moving away from the location or breaking the line around their location by 30m. Dogs should be kept under close control.

What to do if you find a wildcat in your pen

The most important action in mitigating gamebird predation inside closed rearing pens is prevention. If a wildcat has managed to enter a closed rearing pen, they can be very difficult to remove. The point of entry must be determined so that repeat entry can be prevented.

1. The first step is to enable and encourage the wildcat to leave the enclosure of its own accord, i.e. through passive means. This can include turning off any electrified fencing that would impede exit and placing several climbable structures, e.g. a rough sawn deer post of at least 4 inches diameter or a tree trunk with bark, at a 45-degree angle against strainer posts surrounding the enclosure. Monitor these overnight using camera traps or with direct observation (e.g. using a thermal imager at a discrete distance). Temporarily lowering the top section of the fencing or creating resealable exit holes in the fence at these points may also help. If this step is successful, the pen should be secured immediately against the wildcat or kittens returning via the same entry point.
2. If step 1 is unsuccessful, open the pen (i.e. lift the skirt, or open entry/exit points) at ground level to increase the chances of the wildcat leaving. This will also result in birds leaving the pen, but they may be encouraged to return for food via the re-entry funnels, once the cat has left.
3. If the wildcat remains within the pen following the above steps, and it is the first time the wildcat has entered the pen and it is not a female wildcat with kittens, then it can be moved from the pen. However, the outcome is unlikely to be successful if the cat is under pressure and stressed. Consequently, dogs should not be used to flush the wildcat(s) but only used if necessary, where thick cover exists, to indicate a cat and be kept on a short lead at all times. This should equally help to minimise impact on gamebirds within the pen.
4. If this is not successful, a licence will need to be obtained to live-capture the wildcat. This would only be granted if it can be demonstrated that the wildcat is unlikely to get back into the pen once it has been released. This would involve having fencing constructed to a standard as specified in the guidance above. A licence can only be given if it will achieve the purpose for which it is granted, therefore if a wildcat is able to get back into the pen the licenced purpose is not achieved. Live-capture will be very difficult if there is an ample food source already in the pen, such as game birds. A site visit will be needed by NatureScot before a licence is issued. A licence won’t be given to transport a wildcat a large distance before release (i.e. to stop it returning).
5. Following a successful moving out of the wildcat, if the wildcat returns and the fencing has been constructed to a standard as specified in the guidance above, then moving can continue to be attempted and the point of entry determined and sealed once the wildcat is out as before. However, if the fencing is not at the standard specified, moving out cannot continue and a licence would not be issued to trap.
6. If the wildcat has kittens within the pen, a licence will be needed to disturb the wildcat (i.e. moving her out) as such activities could impact on her ability to breed. As noted above, the criteria for meeting the licensing tests are high.
7. Habitat management within the pen such as scrub clearing can be conducted if a wildcat is inside as long as there is an exit point for the wildcat, clearing is conducted so that the wildcat has access to the exit point, and the work is carried out so that risks of injury to the wildcat is minimised. Dog should not be brought into the pen.  However, as above, if the wildcat has kittens within the pen then a licence will be needed.