BIRD CONTROL

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has updated General Licence 002 (GL002), which permits the control of feral pigeons for the purposes of protecting public health, public safety and preventing the spread of disease.

The changes, which came into effect on 16 September 2025, affect the licence conditions around cage traps.

What’s changed?

• The list of permitted cage traps has been reduced to those specifically designed for trapping feral pigeons.

• Wording has been clarified to ensure the licence does not permit the use of decoy birds in traps.

The revised licence replaces the version published earlier this year and remains valid until 31 December 2025.

More information

Full details of the changes can be found on the NRW website.

If you have any questions about using the licence, you can contact NRW’s Species Permitting Team by email at specieslicence@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk or by phone on 0300 065 3000.