are you legal?
There are approximately 70 different organisations out there looking after our native wildlife and exotic imports. Some are paid for by us (tax payer) and others are of charitable status.
For a starting point let's take a quick look at the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 or more specifically what it means to us as fly tiers.
It is an offence to kill, injure or destroy the nest of any wild bird where the act applies. That has to be wrong doesn't it? Well no - there are provisions for certain species but in a nutshell this is as the law stands and it most definitely applies to the derivatives (feathers to you and me) of the same.
In a recent case:
"In May 2006 a Devon district councilor was found guilty of intentionally killing a wild bird, contrary to section 1(1)a of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Dr Brian Boughton of Dartmouth was fined £400.00 and given a one years conditional discharge after the case was brought against him by the RSPCA.
Dr Boughton denied illegally killing a herring gull that was nesting in his roof. He had obtained a copy of a Defra general licence which allows the public to kill some wild birds in certain circumstances. Dr Boughton shot the gull with and air-rifle after it defecated in his wife’s salad. He then hung the dead gull from a tree to act as a deterrent to other gulls. The RSPCA argued in court that he had not dispatched the herring gull within the terms of the licence but had shot it out of sheer annoyance."
The licence referred to is issued by Natural England under the provisions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act and it' worth a read particularly the purposes and species for which such a licence is issued. A very important paragraph ...
"4. This licence can only be relied on in circumstances where the authorised person is satisfied that appropriate non-lethal methods of control such as scaring are either ineffective or impracticable."
This would imply that before I can shoot a woodpidgeon I need to get this licence from DEFRA and then go "Shoo" in the hope that it will fly away! Has anyone been prosecuted, I don't know but as statistics are not kept of native wildlife crime it's going to be difficult to find out.
The Wildlife & Countryside Act is unusual (but not unique in this reqard – the same is true of the Customs and Excise Management Act and of COTES) in law in that the onus is on keeper of any wild bird derivative to prove innocence should a challenge be made, innocent until proven guilty does not apply! I have been assured that prosecution does not take place unless the police have evidence that a crime has been committed but the law does not require that to be the case.
What about CITES?
CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Lets take a look at a familiar feather, Jungle Cock (Gallus Sonneratii)
| Exporter | Origin | Imp Qty | Imp Unit | Imp Term | (Re-)Exp Quantity | (Re-)Exp Term |
| CA | 12 | live | ||||
| GB | 2 | live | ||||
| ZA | 40 | live | ||||
| ZA | 80 | live | ||||
| ZA | 2 | bodies | ||||
| ZA | BE | 2 | skins | |||
| NO | GB | 150 | feathers | |||
| US | 27 | feathers | 27 | feathers | ||
| CA | GB | 1 | feathers | |||
| CA | GB | 225 | feathers | |||
| KE | GB | 1000 | feathers |
These figures are from the CITES database, they don't cover a month these figures cover the period 1975-2006! I thought the figures were wrong, I asked and was told they were accurate. The 1000 feathers look like an exercise that a reputable tying company completed recently. The feathers ended up being destroyed because the re-importation into the UK required confirmation that the feathers were the actual ones exported to Kenya and not alternative KE stock.
So where then do all the capes we use come from? I don't know but the must be at least a doubt as to the legality of a percentage. Sonneratii is Appendix II on the CITES list, this means that once it's in the EU documentation is not required for sale within the EU. This leaves anyone that uses Jungle Cock in a difficult position because sonneratii is a CITES listed species.
There are two agencies in the UK that are responsible for the enforcement of CITES. HMRC under the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 are responsible for ensuring import and export of CITES listed species are legal and detecting those who are breaking the law.
The police are responsible for ensuring internal sales of CITES listed species are legal under the Control of Trade in Endangered Species Enforcement Regulation 1997 as amended 2005. This function falls (usually) upon the wildlife crimes officer in your area. The resources given to wildlife crime varies from area to area.
This species is listed on Annex B of the EU Wildlife Trade Regulations (CITES App II) and what constitutes as proof of legal origin is not standardised. This is the legislation with which the Police must work, flawed though it may appear.
The EU has implemented CITES in the Wildlife Trade Regulations. Species are listed in Annexes A, B and C. These Annexes are almost the same as CITES Appendices I, II and III. One difference being that some non-CITES species of European raptors and owls are now listed in Annex A although they don't appear in Appendix I
Q. How do you know that the feathers you have bought are legal?
You are required under law to make 'reasonable enquiries' into the legal origin of the specimens concerned. This has not been fully tested in a court of law, so again there is no template that must be followed to indicate what exactly 'reasonable' would be.
Suffice to say you must be satisfied that you have made sufficient enquiries into the legal origin of the specimen and should you have any doubts you should not proceed with the purchase.
The agencies are aware that this is a far from perfect situation, and one that is certainly exacerbated by our membership of the EU. it leaves us all in an unknown and untested state (assuming we use JC that is).
One look at eBay will show Jungle Cock being sold with shipping being offered worldwide, I have yet to see any supporting paperwork (import permit and export permit or re-export certificate) for the out of EU sales. The authorities are well aware of the activities on eBay and the problems are being addressed, I take that to mean intelligence being gathered and prosecution where appropriate.
Also the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (CEMA) comes into play here
CEMA controls illegal:
Importation of wildlife and wildlife products into the UK
Export of wildlife and wildlife products from the UK
Possession or dealing in illegally imported wildlife or wildlife products
Evasion of charges or failure to pay duty.
Penalties under CEMA include up to seven years’ imprisonment and unlimited fines and is quite a deterrent!
Then there is ...
The Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994
Only a small part of the Conservation (Natural Habitats &c.) Regulations 1994 (the “Habitats Regulations”) is concerned with trade:
Does any of this matter? I think so but not just from a conservation perspective. Sooner or later the art of Fly Tying will come under the spotlight. A few prosecutions will be used to paint us collectively as irresponsible. The trade also suffers, the legitimate trade that is. It is nigh on impossible to get a fly tied with JC into the UK legally; it is a lengthy, costly process with many pitfalls along the way so substitute is used. I have heard a torrent of abuse directed at one company for not using real JC!
Where does this leave us, somewhat overlooked I think. Taxidermists have a higher profile and are accommodated within the Wildlife and Countryside Act, they are advised to keep logs of all dead stock brought to them or found but a whole bird (or mammal) is easier to track than a feather or patch of fur. As tiers I don't think we should be paranoid but we must all behave in a responsible manner because sooner or later we will have attention brought upon us in a high profile prosecution and therein lies the road to ruin.
It doesn't take long to find product out there at a bargain price but before you purchase please take a moment to consider if the product is legitimate, if you are not sure then ask!
I hope this overview of the law and how it possibly impacts upon us is of some benefit and as with all things legal in nature if you have any doubts to how these laws impact upon your hobby then please seek professional legal advice.