Annex
Stolen from the Wild
Stolen from the Wild is a new national
campaign to raise awareness about the little known crime of stealing
wild plants for commercial and private use. The Partnership for
Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW), which includes all organisations
for wildlife crime enforcement in the UK, is distributing postcards
of bluebells with the message: Stolen from the Wild, warning
the public that many favourite garden bulbs such as bluebells
and snowdrops, moss for hanging baskets or Christmas wreaths,
and rare plants such as the Scottish Primrose, are taken in significant
quantities from the wild, and could endanger species.
The PAW campaign has been organised by Scottish
Natural Heritage, the wild plant conservation charity Plantlife
Scotland and Strathclyde Police, with funding from the Scottish
Executive. The postcards are aimed at the general public—particularly
gardeners—and will be distributed through conservation organisations,
public visitor centres and garden centres. In the longer term,
PAW hopes to develop guidelines with garden centres to ensure
that products are bought from sustainable sources.
Problems facing bluebells and other native plants
In March 2003, the UK's favourite flower was
announced as the bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta),
following Plantlife's County Flowers campaign, when everyone was
encouraged to vote for their favourite flower. This celebration
of the bluebell reflects the high esteem in which the plant is
held and increases demand for native bluebells both in the countryside
and in our gardens. However, up to 50% of the world's bluebells
grow in the UK, so we have an obligation to protect them. A number
of other native plants are similarly wanted for the garden.
These plants are facing a number of threats.
For the native bluebell, for example, the three biggest threats
are unsustainable collection, genetic pollution through interbreeding
with the non native species, the Spanish bluebell (Hyacinthoides
hispanica) and climate change:
1. Unsustainable collection: bluebells,
snowdrops and primroses are all in demand for the garden. Significant
sums can be generated from the collection of wild bulbs, which
are therefore sometimes targeted by bulb diggers, not all of whom
are collecting legally. In 1998, the native bluebell was listed
on Schedule 8 of the Countryside and Wildlife Act 1981, which
protects it from exploitation for commercial sale. Snowdrop is
protected under Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species (CITES). In addition, where permission of the landowner
has not been obtained for collection, bulb and plant collection
is recognised as theft. Since 1998 there have been a number of
successful prosecutions for stealing bluebell bulbs, where the
permission of the land owner had not been obtained. Schedule 8
protection applies throughout the UK, and in 2000 with the Countryside
and Rights of Way Act for England and Wales, penalties for wild
plant crime were increased and included custodial sentences. The
current draft Nature Conservation (Scotland) Bill supports similar
legislation for Scotland.
2. Genetic pollution through hybridisation:
current legislation means that it is difficult for suppliers to
source native bluebell bulbs for sale. It is more usual to see
Spanish bluebells for sale. However, Spanish bluebells cross breed
with the native bluebell and produce fertile hybrids. This means
that the genetic status of the native bluebell is threatened as
hybrids become increasingly widespread. The current bluebell survey
being run by Plantlife, called Bluebells for Britain, aims to
track the extent of Spanish, hybrid and native bluebells and to
assess the significance of the problem in hybridisation and the
resulting decline in native bluebells.
3. Climate change: if current predictions
about wetter winters and hot, dry summers are realised, then the
bluebell and other woodland plants may be threatened by resulting
changes to their habitat. Warmer winters are also allowing competitive
plants such as garlic mustard and cow parsley to start leaf growth
earlier in the year, so that bulbs, including bluebells and snowdrops,
are losing their advantage in setting growth early.
How you can help
Through the Stolen from the Wild campaign,
partners of the Partnership Against Wildlife Crime are encouraging
people to take action. For bluebells and other woodland plants,
there are a number of things that members of the public can do:
— Check sources of bulbs and double
check that they have not been sourced illegally from the wild
by asking your supplier and consulting Fauna & Flora International's
Good Bulb Guide, available at www.fauna-flora.org or tel 01223
571000.
— Use non moss alternatives or moss
raked from your lawn instead of buying moss to line baskets or
mulch pot plants.
— Never plant or dump garden plants
in the countryside.
— Always compost excess garden material
carefully.
— Do not allow garden plants to colonise
natural environments.
— Keep up to date on information about
potentially damaging non-native species, like the Spanish bluebell,
and avoid buying them.
For suppliers, there are a number of actions
that reflect responsible sales and would help to protect native
plants like the bluebell:
— Check sources of bulbs in particular
and other plants that may have been gathered from the wild within
the UK and beyond. This includes mosses for example. Retailers
should take care to ensure that bulbs sold are appropriately sourced
from native stock grown under licence in nurseries.
— Consider signing up to the joint
Flora locale / Plantlife code of practice for collectors, growers
and suppliers of wild flora. For more information see www.floralocale.org
For more information on wild plant crime contact:
Sarah Roe, Scottish Natural Heritage on tel
0131 446 2270 or see www.snh.org.uk and www.plantlife.org.uk
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