Western Jackdaw - Interaction With Humans - Pest Control

Pest Control

The Western Jackdaw has been hunted as vermin, though not as heavily culled as other species of corvid. After a series of poor harvests in the early 1500s, Henry VIII introduced a Vermin Act in 1532 "ordeyned to dystroye Choughes (i.e. Jackdaws), Crowes and Rokes" to protect grain crops from their predations. Western Jackdaws were notorious as they also favoured fruit, especially cherries. This act was taken up in a piecemeal fashion, but Elizabeth I passed the Act for the Preservation of Grayne in 1566 that was taken up with more vigour. The species was hunted for its threat to grain crops and for propensity for nesting in belfries until the mid-20th century. Particularly large numbers were culled in the county of Norfolk. Western Jackdaws were also culled on game estates as they raid nests of other birds for eggs. In a 2003 dissertation on public opinion of corvids, Antonia Hereth notes that the German naturalist Alfred Brehm considered the Western Jackdaw to be a lovable bird, and did not describe any negative impacts of this species on agriculture.

The Western Jackdaw is one of a very small number of birds that it is legal to use as a decoy or to trap in a cage in the United Kingdom. The other pest species that can be controlled by trapping are the Crow, Jay, Magpie and Rook. An authorised person must comply with the requirements of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and does not need to show that the birds were a nuisance before trapping them. As of 2003 the Western Jackdaw was listed as a potential species for targeted hunting in the European Union Birds Directive, and hunting has been encouraged by German hunting associations. Permission to shoot Western Jackdaws in spring and summer exists in Cyprus as they are thought (incorrectly) to prey on gamebirds.