Pheasant and partridge classified as species that imperil UK wildlife

Shooting interests in England will need licence to release non-native birds near nature reserves

Pheasants and partridges are to be classified alongside Japanese knotweed and grey squirrels as species that imperil native wildlife, the government has announced. People with shooting interests in England will have to apply for a licence to release the non-native birds near nature reserves.

The surprise announcement came after a legal challenge by the campaign group Wild Justice, which successfully argued that European protections obliged the authorities to regulate about 60 million non-native pheasants and partridges let loose into the countryside to be shot each year.