The Wildlife and
Countryside Act 1981
T
his is still the major legal instrument for wildlife protection
in Britain, although other significant acts have been passed since. It has numerous
parts and supplementary lists and schedules many of which have been amended
since publication. The following selection is not complete. Warning: do not
buy a copy of the whole act and expect it to be either up to date, intelligible
or affordable! We did this, rashly, so you don't have to. If you can't find
what you need below, it might be best to get a recent book on the subject, or
seek specialist advice.
• Overview
of the Act
:
includes description of sections and list of schedules
• Wild Birds and the
Law:
a comprehensive guide to the provisions of the Wildlife & Countryside
Act as applied to wild birds. Includes schedules, and updated Schedule 4(1994).
• Sites of Special
Scientific Interest
• Protection
of Plants, including Bryophytes
• Protection of Reptiles
and Amphibians
• Protection
of Other Animals
• Schedules of the
Act:
kept updated to the current position (as far as Naturenet is aware).
By following the link below, it is possible to download a
scanned copy of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as at the time when it
received Royal Assent. The Act remains one of the most important pieces of wildlife
legislation in Great Britain, but it is important to be aware that this document
does not represent the Act as it currently stands. 
Since the passing of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 there
have been various amendments to the text of the Act, most significantly through
the Countryside and Rights
of Way (CRoW) Act 2000
(in England and Wales) and the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 (in Scotland),
but also through other legislation including the Local Government Act 1985,
the Water Act 1989, and the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (this is not a
complete list of amending legislation).
There have also been many changes to the species listed in the
schedules,
through Variations to the Schedules Orders. There is a statutory five-yearly
review of Schedules 5 and 8 (protected wild animals and plant respectively),
undertaken by the statutory conservation agencies and coordinated through JNCC,
but changes to the Schedules can be made by the Secretary of State at any time,
if it is considered necessary because of a threat of extinction or in response
to international obligations. (from the JNCC
website)
Download Wildlife
and Countryside Act 1981
UNEP-WCMC
Species Database of threatened animals (worldwide): a very good and seemingly
complete list of all recognised endangered species in the world, searchable
by name and location. Includes all species on the schedules of the Wildlife
and Countryside Act, plus all other similar legal protection in other countries.
Pages marked with this symbol are exclusively written for
Naturenet