Cadw has categorically denied that it employed staff to cull geese around Caerphilly Castle last week.
The body, which looks after the castle and its grounds, was the subject of anger across social media after rumours spread that Cadw employees had been kicking and smashing geese nests on the surrounding islands.
Members of the Caerphilly Bird Rescue Facebook page said they had received two separate complaints from members of the public that two people were seen using a dinghy to get to the islands, and that their actions had severely distressed the birds.
A Cadw spokesperson said: “Cadw can confirm there is no truth in any of the claims about the treatment of geese or their nests at Caerphilly Castle.
“We maintain and promote the highest standards of animal welfare at all times.”
CADWR are wrong, this article is therefore incorrect. This situation is not “rumours of mistreatment to geese around Caerphilly Castle” IT IS A FACT.
Even today, Wednesday,between 6 and 7am two people were witnessed again using a dinghy to reach the nesting banks of wildlife around the Castle,
They were seen to walk the areas, disturbing incubating birds on nests, and removing and not replacing eggs from beneath these birds which they had frightened away. They were then witnessed trampling the nests the eggs had been removed from.
If this action is in accordancew with CADWR`s “maintaining and promoting the highest standards of animal welfare at all times.” then it is now time for someone from higher authority to formally scutinise what is being done in the `Caerphilly Killing Fields` around the Castle.
It will be interesting to see if this agency of the Welsh Assembly are acting legally, who they engage to do this work and on what statutory authority they undertake it.
And for the record, I witnessed the event mentioned in the article, but I am not one of the people who complained as is also mentioned in the article, , (it was at 3 PM.) as did a number of young children and parents, who`s attention was first drawn to the activity on the Island by the two CADWR staff (I don`t know if they were the same people I witnessed again today) by the screaming and screetching of the birds these people disturbed and which were incubating their eggs on nests on the Island, the birds were scattering in all directions, many hitting the trees when they were trying to escape these people, birds were seen crashing to the ground on the island before finding an exit to safety onto the water, it was a Grotesque scene and something children should not have witnessed. The two people then walked the island picking up eggs from nests, they then walked through the island deliberatly destroying the nests in the process, on that occassion they were collecting eggs in large buckets, today however they were using large blue plastic waste bags,
CADWR will have to attend to these issues formally, I understand a complaint has been made to DEFRA and other interested parties, CADWR at one stage stated that this grotesque process was being undertaken by CAERPHILLY COUNTY BOROUGH COUNCIL pest control staff, THIS IS CATIGORICALLY REFUTED BY THE COUNCIL. I wonder on what and who` authority the work of this destruction of wildlife and their habitat is being done? and who are these people doing it, they have no respect for the welfare and treatment of other living creatures, whoever they are.
It is interesting to note that CAERPHILLY CBC celebratre the DUCK, GEESE and wildlife population in the Town by way of Very Very valuable BRONZE monuments to them in CARDIFF Road Caerphilly, and in addition they have just spent thousands of pounds refurbishing them, if this killing continues unmanaged these monuments will soon become memorials.
Wildlife has survived in and around Caerphilly Castle since before the 16th Century, and been celebrated by authorities, parents and children for many many years, local school teachers should think twice before using the park to walk classes of local children through it before checking with someone about this distasteful activity, and when it may be about to happen, it has to be better explained by those responsible. And I predict they will have to do so, thier denial in this article is NOT enough. A full and detailed explination is warranted.
There is destruction of wild birds in progress at the castle, this has been observed by several people. The County Borough has denied any involvement by means of an answer to a ‘Freedom of Information Request’. Given that FOI answers are bound by statute, The FOI Act 2000, it is highly unlikely that the council are engaged in this activity, a point made by me at the Town Council meeting of 18th April 2016.
If not the council then who is involved? The answer will soon be with us as further FOI requests have been made, including one to CADW. It is my understanding that wild birds may only be culled or their nests destroyed under certain, controlled, conditions and that DEFRA (Dept. of Food, Environment and Rural Affairs) is the issuer of licences for these, specific, circumstances. They too have been requested, under the FOI Act, to disclose whether they have issued such licences in respect of the castle and grounds.
The wildfowl have been a feature of the castle since before I was born and the swans, geese, ducks, coots and moorhen have been a much loved feature of the castle moats by locals and tourists alike. We will soon find out under whose authority the destruction was ordered and appropriate action will then be taken.