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Red squirrel threat from grey plague

A virus could wipe out the red squirrel population in the North of England within the next 10 years unless plans to cull grey squirrels as they come in are put in place. A research team made up of Newcastle University, Queen Mary, University of London amongst others makes its recommendations for grey squirrel management after studying red squirrel populations in Cumbria and Norfolk. Until now the reds’ main survival challenge was believed to be competition with grey squirrels over resources. But this latest research revealed that it is actually the squirrel poxvirus which is the biggest threat to the native population. In the absence of a vaccine, the researchers believe the only effective way of stopping the spread is to target grey squirrel control at the narrow entry points and corridors to England’s 16 designated red squirrel refuges by killing the small numbers of greys that may come in.The team looked at how far red squirrels had retreated and found the annual distance was 76 square kilometres in Cumbria and 96 sq km in Norfolk. In contrast, the annual retreat in Italy was just 3.6 sq km and 4.4 sq km in Scotland. The reds’ decline was 17-25 times higher in Cumbria and Norfolk where the virus was present than in Italy and Scotland where it was not. Dr Peter Lurz, research associate at the Institute for Research on Environment and Sustainability (IRES) at Newcastle University, said: “We are not trying to wipe out the grey squirrel but as conservationists we have a duty to look after the red squirrel as it is a protected, native species. Small, targeted control at local entry points to refuge areas is an accepted management strategy and already works well in controlling populations of species like the deer and rabbit. It’s a practical and affordable solution.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .