Avian flu impact puts poultry rare breeds under threat
“The UK’s brilliant array of rare and native poultry is under serious threat” – Tom Davis.
The Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) has moved all of the UK’s native poultry breeds into the ‘priority’ category of its annual watchlist.
The move has been made due to the significant impact on breeding programmes in recent years from the combination of avian influenza restrictions and the rising cost of animal husbandry.
The latest watchlist has also highlighted the plight of native pig breeds. Seven of the 11 native pig breeds remain in the ‘priority’ category and the majority of rare pig breeds are showing a sustained decline in sow numbers.
Tom Davis, an RBST trustee and farm manager said: “The UK’s brilliant array of rare and native poultry is under serious threat. Under the continued threat of avian influenza, there is a clear decline in active breeding programmes and when breed populations are so low, losing flocks can be devastating.”
Because of the challenges facing rare pig and poultry breeds, RBST has called on the government to do more to encourage people to keep them.
Christopher Price, RBST chief executive, said: “The government’s new Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme encourages farmers and smallholders to choose native breeds for grazing, but it does nothing to help safeguard the future of our native pig and poultry breeds.
“Today’s watchlist shows the outlook for our rare pig and poultry breeds is a great concern, we want to see the ELM’s SP8 supplement broadened to include native pigs and poultry as well as grazing animals.”
However, the report has revealed some conservation success stories. Sheep breeds such as the Norfolk horn and the greyface Dartmoor are growing in numbers, with the latter moving out of the ‘at risk’ category.
The saddleback pig has also had a good year, despite the general decline in pig numbers. The number of pedigree registered progeny increased by 16 per cent and the number of breeders grew by 12 per cent.
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A set of international guidelines for disease surveillance in wildlife has been updated for the first time since 2015.
