The agricultural industry have strong lobbyists and Defra listens!
Kathy
There
is evidence that Badger and wild Boar are vectors for bTB, as are muntjac deer etc (although I believe it's a slightly different strain in Boar) (see on the first link I posted). The question/issue is slightly different in UK in that Boars are still limited as an introduced species, so any outbreaks are more likely to be a case of cattle transmitting the disease to wild boar. I'm not sure about badger to boar transmissions. Studies have been done in Europe where cross species (ie. boar to cattle) infection has occurred. One of the roles of Defra is to implement measures to reduce the risk of infection (any kind of infection) in livestock. If the Defra/Vets/Farmers perceive the spread of wild boar will increase the risk of transmission to cattle stocks, they could cull under the mandate of 'preventing/minimising the risks of bTB outbreaks' (at the moment fears of a problem here may be fueled by continental instances of cross infection).
One of the fundamental problems with the trials and hotspot target culls that followed the Krebbs report was badger were repopulating 'cleaned' areas and those areas outside perimeters of culls, experienced higher outbreaks of infection than they would have done otherwise. As such, only a massive and systematic cull of healthy badgers over fast tracts of the countryside (especially in Devon and Cornwall) were likely to succeed. Unpopular to public, expensive, probably impossible to locate all healthy badgers, neither Defra nor farmers wanted to be responsible for carrying out the blanket cull. In addition, non-Defra scientists posited that outbreaks of bTB were actually being primarily spread from
cattle to
cattle and not from badger contact. Moratoriums on the movement of infected livestock, introduction of better pre-movement testing, longer 'waiting' periods before movement of stock, to allow for potential incubation to expire, have not been adequate to controlling spread in UK. The amount of money that has been invested in failed attempts of control/destruction/compensation/trials/consultations/reports etc etc over the past 50 years, quite simply would have been better invested in cattle vaccine research and introduction.
Sooo .... ''It's far easier to cull a few boar now than further down the line to avoid the nightmare situation above we have with badgers'' would be the thinking of Defra's proposed cull of boar.
There is no scientific justification for the obliteration of badgers from swathes of countryside, as there is no scientific justification for the culling of boar.
Until Defra and MAFF sort out their farming policies to move from unhealthy intensive farming, we are stuck with culling badgers, boar etc to control bTB, culling wild birds, to 'control' HN1, F&Mouth, BSE etc etc
We will never irradiate bTB in wild populations of boar/badgers, it comes with their package, they are vectors and always will be as a species- other than making those species extinct as an option, all we can do is prevent the spread of it through domestic herds by improved farming techniques, such as improved husbandry, more locally produced meats and organic feeding with smaller herds.
Loads of background to Defra/bTB if you want a wade through.
To be honest anyway, I think I disagree with any animal being introduced for the purposes of hunting them but that's because I don't like hunting period. However, if populations of wild/feral Boar need to be limited now, proportions of them should be sterilised while numbers are still small enough to make that feasible.
Ps (of course, I'd suggest a very strong dart tranquiliser before anyone attempts to castrate a male adult boar
)
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=47597&highlight=badger+cull,+public+consultation
