Northern Ireland, renowned for its beautiful countryside, is home to thousands of plants and animals, some of which are threatened by Wildlife Crime.
Doris Nöe, Chairperson of Lecale Conservation, a conservation group in the Lecale area, said: “Wildlife Crime is any action contravening legislation protecting Northern Ireland’s wild animals and plants. It includes poisoning birds of prey, salmon poaching, badger baiting and disturbing seals at their haul-out or pupping sites.
“County Down has very important habitats such as its colonies of Harbour Seals, two of which are on the Lecale coast with one at Minerstown Beach being particularly sensitive to disturbance in mid-summer when the seals give birth to their pups.
“At this month’s launch of the Partnership Against Wildlife Crime (PAWNI), participating organisations emphasised that it is everyone’s responsibility to protect wildlife. Together with PSNI these bodies have got serious about all forms of Wildlife Crime and are determined to prevent it.”
Doris added: “We are delighted to support the ‘Watch out for Wildlife Crime’ campaign. PAWNI’s new website is an excellent source of information for the general public.
“Anyone who has seen something suspicious and is not sure if it is a Wildlife Crime can now get more information on:
“Once it has been established that a Wildlife Crime has taken place, the observer is asked to call PSNI on 101, describe the incident as a Wildlife Crime and ask for an incident reference number to facilitate follow-up.”
