Statutory guidance

Licence to take shrews (GL01)

Updated 1 January 2024

Applies to England

General licence GL01: to take shrews (Soricidae) for scientific or educational purposes, or for the purpose of ringing or marking, or examining any ring or mark.

Overview

This licence permits persons with appropriate knowledge and experience to trap and mark shrews for scientific or education purposes. Users must comply with licence terms and conditions.

Registration: Users do not need to register to use this licence.

Recording and reporting: Users are required to report fatalities – see Condition 3(c).

Reference: WML - GL01

Legislation

Statute(s) Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) (‘the 1981 Act’).

Section(s) This licence is issued under sections 16(3)(a) and (b), and 16(5).

Licence terms and conditions

Valid for the period: 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 (inclusive).

Area valid in: All counties of England (landward of the mean low water mark).

Purpose(s) for which this licence is issued: This licence can only be used for:

• science or education
• conserving wild animals
• ringing and marking or examining any mark on wild animals

What this licence permits

Subject to all the terms and conditions of this licence and solely for the purpose(s) stated above, this licence permits Authorised Persons to:

• take shrews by the use of appropriate live capture traps, and
• mark shrews using appropriate humane methods

Who can use this licence

This licence can only be used by Authorised Persons* except those convicted on or after 1 January 2010 of a wildlife crime* unless, in respect of that offence, either:

• they are a rehabilitated person for the purposes of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and their conviction is treated as spent, or
• a court has made an order discharging them absolutely

Any application by a person to whom this exclusion applies for an individual licence will be considered on its merits.

*: see Definitions

Definitions used in this licence

“Authorised person” is a person with appropriate knowledge and experience of shrews, and the trapping and marking techniques permitted, or under the direct supervision of such a person.

“Wildlife crime” means any offence under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, the Deer Act 1991, the Hunting Act 2004, the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996, the Animal Welfare Act 2006, the Protection of Animals Act 1911 (all as amended) or the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019.

Licence conditions

1. This licence does not authorise the use of any method of taking which is prohibited by section 11 of the 1981 Act except those listed under ‘What this licence permits’.

2. No work shall be carried out under this licence on a National Nature Reserve except with the prior written permission of Natural England.

3. At each inspection:
   
   a. Any shrew taken under this licence shall be liberated at the site of capture immediately after examination and/or marking.
   
   b. Any other species caught in a trap must be released, unharmed, at the site of capture immediately after examination and/or marking, unless they are listed a non-native species. See Information and Advice notes l - m.
   
   c. Any dead animal caught in the trap must be removed from it. The licensee must report shrew deaths to Natural England (see contact details below) using form GL-01 Annex to help assess the trapping method.
   
   
4. All relevant animal welfare legislation must be complied with at all times, including the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 (Information and Advice note r).
   
   
5. When in use, every trap used under this licence must be physically inspected as follows:
   
   a. Where food and bedding are provided: at least twice every day at intervals of no less than 3 hours and no more than 12 hours (see Information and advice note e and h), or
   
   b. Without food and bedding: at intervals less than 3 hours
   
   
6. All equipment used for the purpose of this licence shall be so constructed and maintained as to avoid cruelty and distress to wild animals (see Information and Advice notes a - b).
   
   
7. Where a trap is not in use, it must be rendered incapable of holding or catching shrews or other animals. Any bait, food, or water must also be removed (see Information and Advice note k).

Important

This licence authorises acts that would otherwise be offences under the legislation referred to above. Failure to comply with its terms and conditions:

i. may be an offence against the 1981 Act or mean that the licence cannot be relied upon and an offence could therefore be committed. The maximum penalty available for an offence under the 1981 Act is, at the time of the issue of this licence, an unlimited fine and/or a six month custodial sentence

ii. may result in your permission to use this licence being withdrawn. Natural England will inform any person or organisation whose permission to use this licence is withdrawn in writing. This sanction may be applied to other similar licences, and

iii. may mean that you are not able to rely on this licence as a defence in respect to the prohibitions within the Animal Welfare Act 2006 or the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996. If the activity that you wish to undertake is not covered by this licence, or if you are unable to comply with any of the terms and conditions which apply to the use of this licence, then you will need to apply to Natural England for an individual licence.

This licence is not a consent for the purposes of Part II of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) in respect to SSSIs. It is your responsibility to get consent or assent if required before this licence can be used on any SSSI. See Advice (x - z) for further information.

Issued by and on behalf of Natural England on 1 January 2024.

Information and advice specific to this licence

Coronavirus – Best practice

a. To avoid transmitting COVID-19 from people to wild mammals, you should: stay at least 2 metres from live wild mammals at all times; only capture or handle live wild mammals if necessary; and avoid going within 2 metres of known breeding or regularly used resting sites of mammals. If you cannot follow these guidelines, then you should minimise the time spent in close proximity and handling mammals; limit the number of people that come into close proximity or handle mammals; and keep animals separate from other individuals as far as possible.

b. Persons acting under this licence should follow good hygiene practices, including wearing of disposable gloves, or clean and disinfected non-disposable gloves; wearing a face covering when handling and in close proximity to any mammal; and washing hands before and after close proximity or handling of any mammal. Face coverings, non-disposable gloves and overalls or other clothing should be washed / disinfected between uses when handling mammals.

c. You should not carry out activities under this licence if you feel unwell, test positive for COVID-19 or live with someone who has or might have COVID-19.

d. Any products used to clean and disinfect equipment should be safe for use where there could be contact with animals and used at an effective and safe dilution rate. ‘Safe4’ is considered to be an appropriate disinfectant for this purpose and is considered effective against the virus at a dilution of 1:50. Other products can be used to clean and disinfect equipment.

Trap construction

e. It is the responsibility of each person relying on this licence to use appropriate equipment (trap) and to ensure that they are competent to use such equipment so as to avoid causing unnecessary suffering. Appropriate live-traps are those that are designed, set and operated in such a manner as to avoid death or injury. This licence is intended to be used with traps manufactured commercially for the purpose of catching small mammals. ‘Home made’ traps should not be used unless they are equivalent to the specifications of those commercially available. When using ‘home made’ traps, records of measurements, materials and the live-trap mechanism used should be logged and provided to Natural England, if requested.

f. All traps should be regularly maintained and checked to ensure correct operation before use.

Trap use

g. Food: Leave plenty of suitable food in the trap nest-box. Blowfly larvae or pupae (Calliphora spp., also known as “casters”) are best. These can be frozen and used as required. Frozen food must be fully thawed before use. Use in sufficient numbers to provide 10 g per trap.

h. Bedding: leave in the nest-box to provide insulation. Hay is best. Ensure it is dry.

i. Any person acting under this licence should have regard to the inspection requirements contained in Condition 5. Shrews need to eat every three to four hours, so inspect the trap at suitably frequent intervals.

i. If sufficient food and bedding are left, twice daily inspections (ideally at dusk and early morning) should be sufficient in accordance with licence condition 5.

ii. If for any reason food cannot be left, shrews are likely to die in the trap if left there for more than four hours, and visits should be correspondingly frequent (at intervals of less than three hours) - particularly if trapping from July to September when more shrews may be caught. Remember, however, that very frequent visits to the trap will cause disturbance to the habitat and this may affect trapping success.

j. When setting traps you should carefully record the location of each one and ensure that all those set are collected at the end of trapping. You may wish to mark the location with small flags or coloured tape on a stick.

k. Traps should be stable and the nest chamber of any traps used should be sloped to prevent water running into the bedding.

l. Traps should be covered with surrounding vegetation or other material, to insulate against extremes of temperatures. When trapping following periods of cold weather, particularly when the ground has been frozen, ensure that the trap has sufficient insulation from the ground, which will remain colder than the air temperature. This is particularly important when using metal traps. Within the constraints of licence condition 5, inspection intervals should be more frequent in hot, cold or wet weather. When trapping, avoid setting a trap during periods of extreme hot, cold or wet weather, or when such conditions are likely.

i. At each visit, check bedding and food within the trap and cover outside the trap and replace as required.

m. If shrew deaths occur, adjust the amounts of food and bedding, or increase the frequency of inspections, as appropriate. If despite this, deaths continue, suspend trapping and seek advice. (See Conditions 3(c) and 7 on this licence).

n. In order to render any trap incapable of holding or catching shrews or other animals when out of use, it is necessary to either secure the door in a fully open or closed position or to remove the door completely.

Non-native species

o. Under section 14 of the 1981 Act it is an offence to release into the wild any animal included in Schedule 9 of the 1981 Act. Any animals of species listed on Schedule 9 accidentally caught by licensed trapping should be treated as follows:

• Species listed in Part 1 must not be released or allowed to escape into the wild. It is preferable that these animals are killed in a quick and humane manner as soon as reasonably practicable after discovery. These animals may only be released under an individual licence obtained from Natural England.

• Species listed in Part 1A (which are native to Great Britain) must be released immediately upon discovery. This is permitted under general licence WML- GL22.

• Species listed in Part 1B (which are former native species) may be released immediately upon discovery at the point of capture (this is permitted by general licence WML- GL22), killed humanely or kept in captivity. These animals may only be released at another location under an individual licence obtained from Natural England.

p. If you catch a species listed as an invasive non-native (alien) animal you must not release it. You must quickly and humanely dispatch it, or give it to a premises licensed to keep it. For a list of licensed premises contact Natural England: invasive-alien-species-licence@naturalengland.org.uk.

Biosecurity

q. Users of this licence should consider the risks of activities to biosecurity and take relevant precautions when visiting heathland and woodland sites to avoid the spread of invasive non-native species, and tree and plant pests and diseases such as Phytophthora and Ash dieback Chalara. General biosecurity advice can be found on the GB Non-Native Species Secretariat website. Further information on plant biosecurity is available on the GOV.UK website.

The law

r. Natural England has issued this licence in exercise of the powers conferred by the 1981 Act. Visit www.legislation.gov.uk to view the full text of this legislation.

s. Section 16 of the 1981 Act provides that the offences in Part 1 of the 1981 Act shall not apply to anything done under and in accordance with the terms of a licence granted by the appropriate authority, which is, in England, Natural England.

t. This licence complies with Article 9(1) of the Bern Convention (the exception applied in this case is ‘for the purposes of research and education’). Relevant legislation and good practice

u. Persons acting under a licence should have regard to legislation and good practice relevant to the action(s) undertaken, including animal welfare and the Animal Welfare Act 2006. It is an offence to cause any unnecessary suffering to an animal (including birds) under the control of man (section 4 of the 2006 Act). This applies to the humane dispatch of captured animals and the treatment of animals held in traps or nets, including decoy birds and non-target animals. The application of Animal Welfare Act 2006 to wildlife management activities is explained in Natural England leaflet Wildlife Management Advice Note: The Animal Welfare Act 2006: what it means for wildlife (WML-GU02).

Information and advice for all class and general licences

General information

v. Ordinarily, licences will be reissued on 1 January each year (NB: you do not need to re-register for those with registration requirements). Please note, however, that they can be modified or revoked at any time by Natural England or the Secretary of State, but this will not be done unless there are good reasons for doing so. You are advised to check the terms and conditions of a licence prior to your first use of it each year in case of amendments.

w. The common name of the species given in a licence is included by way of guidance only; in the event of any dispute or proceedings, it is the scientific name of a species only that will be taken into account.

The limits of licences

x. Licences permit action only for the purposes specified on that licence.

y. Licences do not permit actions prohibited under any other legislation, nor do they confer any right of entry upon land.

z. Unless otherwise stated the provisions of Natural England licences only apply landward of the mean low water mark in England. The Marine Management Organisation is responsible for all licensing seaward of the mean low water mark.

Protected sites

za. You can search for and view details about all SSSIs by using Natural England’s Designated Sites system. The notification documents for each SSSI contain a list of operations that require Natural England’s prior consent. Owners and occupiers of land notified as SSSIs are required to give written notice to Natural England before either beginning any of these operations, or allowing someone else to carry out those operations. SSSI consent can only be given to a SSSI owner or occupier. It may be given with or without conditions, or in some cases, consent may not be granted.

A similar process applies to public bodies and statutory undertakers - as defined under Section 28G of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) and this obligation applies even where the operations are carried out on land outside of the SSSI.

zb. Please note that as the licensee you will not be able to undertake the licensed activity on a SSSI until the owner or occupier of the SSSI has applied for, and received, Natural England’s written SSSI consent. If you do so, you may be at risk of committing an offence. As the licensee, if you wish to exercise this licence on a SSSI you must contact the relevant owners or occupiers of the SSSI and ensure they give written notice to Natural England of their proposal to permit you to carry out licensed activity on their SSSI. You should wait until a SSSI consent decision has been received by the SSSI owner/occupier before you begin to exercise this licence on a SSSI. See GOV.UK for further information on how to get SSSI consent from Natural England.

zc. In considering whether to issue consent or assent for activities likely to affect a SSSI that is a European site, in other words a Special Protection Area (SPA) or Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Natural England will carry out a Habitats Regulations Assessment, as required by the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) (‘the Habitats Regulations’) to ensure there will be no adverse effects on the European site.

Further information

The Mammal Society booklet: Live Trapping Small Mammals - A Practical Guide by J Gurnell and J R Flowerdew (2006), contains many useful hints. Available from The Mammal Society.

Contact Natural England for licensing enquiries

Telephone: 020 802 61089

Email: wildlife.scicons@naturalengland.org.uk

Wildlife Licensing, Operations Delivery
Natural England
Horizon House
Deanery Road
Bristol
BS1 5AH

For other enquiries use the Enquiry Service

Telephone: 0300 060 3900

Email: enquiries@naturalengland.org.uk

Website https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/natural-england

WML-GL01 [version January 2024].