Rachel Bigsby Launches Petition to End Gannet Hunting in Scotland

Rachel Bigsby
2 days ago
3 min read

Seabird photographer and advocate, Rachel Bigsby, has launched a public petition calling on the Scottish Parliament to amend Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, with the purpose of ending the licensed taking of Gannets (the Guga Hunt) on Sula Sgeir. The petition, now published and open for signatures, urges lawmakers to remove the power to issue licences for the annual Gannet hunt; a practice Rachel argues is no longer compatible with ecological reality or ethical responsibility.

© Rachel Bigsby. Two Northern Gannets preening one another.

“As a seabird photographer, I believe I have a moral responsibility to speak out. My work isn’t just about showing beauty; it’s about revealing the silent emergencies unfolding in our ecosystems. With avian flu, plastic pollution, and climate change all affecting seabirds, the licensed killing of Gannets is no longer defensible.”

Legislative Context

Under current legislation, the Scottish Government has the authority to issue annual licences to Nature Scot for the hunting of up to 2,000 Gannet chicks — known locally as “guga” — from the uninhabited island of Sula Sgeir. This practice takes place at a time of profound environmental strain. Rachel’s petition seeks a focused amendment to Section 16, asserting that the case for issuing such licences no longer holds ecological or ethical justification.

Key Reasons for Change

Animal Welfare Loopholes Allow Licensed Killing to Continue

Despite strong animal welfare laws, the hunt remains legal due to a provision that classifies killing by a blow to the head as “humane.” In practice, birds may be stunned by a first blow before being killed. This narrow legal framing enables the hunt to continue, even as Gannet populations collapse elsewhere.

The Devastating Toll of Avian Influenza

Since 2022, avian flu has devastated Gannet colonies across the UK and Europe, with mortality rates between 30 and 60 percent. At a time when disease is already removing thousands of birds from the population, the continuation of any licensed killing exacerbates the crisis.

“Avian flu has already wiped out entire breeding grounds. The idea that we’re still licensing the taking of Gannet chicks while their numbers plummet is deeply troubling — morally and ecologically.”

© Rachel Bigsby. Masses of Northern Gannets lie dead from avian influenza.

The Long Road to Reproduction

Gannets do not begin breeding until around five years old and have an average lifespan of 17 years, resulting in a limited reproductive window: one chick per year, for roughly 12 years. The loss of a chick represents not just one bird, but a line of future birds.

The True Cost of Killing a Chick

Each Gannet can produce a maximum of 12 offspring across its breeding life. The licensed killing of 500 chicks represents the loss of at least 6,000 future birds — and likely many more.

Personal Moral Responsibility

Rachel Bigsby has spent thousands of hours in Gannet colonies across Scotland and beyond. As a photographer specialising in seabirds, she bears witness to the pressures they face from collapsing prey stocks to disease and pollution.

“When you spend as much time in seabird colonies as I do, you feel accountable for what happens to them. Silence is complicity. I can’t just photograph a crisis — I have to act.”

Rachel’s acclaimed work with Gannets has been featured in National Geographic, New Scientist, and at the Natural History Museum. Her imagery blends scientific observation with artistic sensitivity, and her practice is grounded in a commitment to environmental advocacy.