Change of https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mallard-ducks-licence-to-take-eggs-and-rear-and-release-chicks

Change description : 2026-01-01 00:01:00: Updated this licence to cover the period 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026. [Guidance and regulation]

Showing diff : 2025-01-01 01:28:39.026600352 +00:00..2026-01-01 01:19:33.067551377 +00:00

Statutory guidance

Mallard ducks: licence to take eggs and rear and release chicks (GL13)

Get a general licence to take mallard duck eggs for incubation and rearing in captivity as long as you release them later in the year.

Applies to England

Documents

Details

This general licence lets you take mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos) eggs for incubation, rearing in captivity and releasing later in the same year.

This licence only applies if you are:

  • the land owner, occupier or anyone authorised by the owner or occupier
  • authorised in writing by the local authority
  • authorised in writing by any England, Scotland or Wales conservation body, a district board for fisheries or local fisheries committee
  • authorised in writing by the Environment Agency, a water undertaker or a sewerage undertaker

You do not need to apply for this general licence but you must meet its conditions and follow its instructions. To meet the conditions you must:

  • only take eggs by hand
  • not take eggs after 31 March
  • release any bird hatched from the egg into the wild no later than 31 July, unless it is disabled or has died
  • destroy any unhatched eggs by 31 July
  • not sell the eggs or any birds hatched from them

Updates to this page

Published 31 December 2013

Last updated 1 January 20252026 + show href="#full-history">+ show all updates
    1. Updated this licence to cover the period 1 January to 31 December 2025. Reworded several sections to make the information clearer. Updated licence condition 6 and the 'Avian influenza' information and advice note. Added a new information and advice note (note a).

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Update history

2026-01-01 00:01
Updated this licence to cover the period 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026.

2025-01-01 00:01
Updated this licence to cover the period 1 January to 31 December 2025. Reworded several sections to make the information clearer. Updated licence condition 6 and the ‘Avian influenza’ information and advice note. Added a new information and advice note (note a).

2024-01-01 00:01
There is an update to this licence for 1 January 2024.

2023-01-01 00:15
Annual licence update, valid from 1 January 2023.