His Majesty the King visits APHA grey squirrel contraceptive work
His Majesty the King visited APHA's Wildlife team in Yorkshire on Tuesday 26 May
On Tuesday 26 May, His Majesty the King visited the York Biotech Campus in Sand Hutton to meet the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s Wildlife team and learn about ongoing work to develop an oral contraceptive in order to reduce grey squirrel impacts and protect native red squirrels.
APHA is developing a conservation initiative to humanely control grey squirrel numbers and support the endangered red squirrel population in the UK. Despite being the country’s only native squirrel breed, the red squirrel is endangered due to a range of factors including competition and disease from introduced grey squirrels, as well as habitat loss.
The King met scientists and researchers involved in a project to create a targeted method delivering oral contraceptives to grey squirrels through a bespoke feeding programme, as part of efforts to slow the rate of the species’ population growth and help red squirrels to thrive.