Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

1 Protection of wild birds, their nests and eggs. E+W+S

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part, if any person intentionally—

(a) kills, injures or takes any wild bird;

(b) takes, damages or destroys the nest of any wild bird while that nest is in use or being built; or

(c) takes or destroys an egg of any wild bird,

he shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this Part, if any person has in his possession or control—

(a) any live or dead wild bird or any part of, or anything derived from, such a bird; or

(b) an egg of a wild bird or any part of such an egg,

he shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) A person shall not be guilty of an offence under subsection (2) if he shows that—

(a) the bird or egg had not been killed or taken, or had been killed or taken otherwise than in contravention of the relevant provisions; or

(b) the bird, egg or other thing in his possession or control had been sold (whether to him or any other person) otherwise than in contravention of those provisions;

and in this subsection “the relevant provisions” means the provisions of this Part and of orders made under it and, in the case of a bird or other thing falling within subsection (2)(a), the provisions of the Protection of Birds Acts 1954 to 1967 and of orders made under those Acts.

(4) Any person convicted of an offence under subsection (1) or (2) in respect of—

(a) a bird included in Schedule 1 or any part of, or anything derived from, such a bird;

(b) the nest of such a bird; or

(c) an egg of such a bird or any part of such an egg,

shall be liable to a special penalty.

(5) Subject to the provisions of this Part, if any person intentionally—

(a) disturbs any wild bird included in Schedule 1 while it is building a nest or is in, on or near a nest containing eggs or young; or

(b) disturbs dependent young of such a bird,

he shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a special penalty.

(6) In this section “wild bird” does not include any bird which is shown to have been bred in captivity.

(7) Any reference in this Part to any bird included in Schedule 1 is a reference to any bird included in Part I and, during the close season for the bird in question, any bird included in Part II of that Schedule.