Forestry and Land Scotland reveals one fox culled 'south of Inverness'
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Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) has refuted claims that fox hunting with dogs is being carried out on the land that it manages.
The organisation has made it clear that it does not allow fox hunting with dogs, that fox hunting with dogs under the Protection of Wild Mammals Act (Scotland) 2002 is illegal and a person who deliberately hunts a wild mammal with a dog commits an offence.
According to FLS, claims made were an irresponsible exaggeration of the fact that last year, one permission was granted for legal access to Scotland’s forests and land for the purposes of legitimate pest control.
The request was for an area south of Inverness and one fox was culled.
FLS environment manager Chris Nixon said: “When we are approached and asked to grant gamekeepers access to our land so that foxes can be flushed out of woodlands, we carry out due diligence checks to assess each individual application.
“This includes identifying the presence of endangered species in the area where access is sought.
“Land managers are legally permitted to control fox numbers to limit predation on livestock, as well as on game birds and ground nesting birds. To suggest that fox hunting is taking place – or that fox control would be allowed to happen in areas where endangered species are present – is simply inaccurate, unfounded and misleading.
“Last year – across Scotland – FLS granted one permission for access on four specific dates and in known and clearly delineated areas. One fox was killed.
“We can also categorically state that there have been no requests or consents for access for fox control in Clashindarroch.”
