March 2018
Along with others working in nature conservation, I’m concerned about the impacts that exotic pets could have on our wildlife. Just to be clear, this blog is about the potential harm of exotic pets on native species, rather than other issues relating to pet keeping and trade. Sadly, some exotic animals kept as pets end up in the wild, resulting either from deliberate or accidental release. Once there, they can harm native wildlife through predation, competition and other effects. Disease transmission can even occur when the pets themselves remain safely in captivity.
Exotic pets are popular in Britain, mirroring a growing trend in more prosperous countries. Unfortunately, as the pet trade grows globally, in all likelihood so will instances of non-native species introductions. I reckon most pet owners are careful and well-intentioned, yet escapes can happen. Working on reptiles and amphibians, I am all too aware of how pet escapes and releases can result in potential harm to native species and to the individual animals themselves, as many of the exotic species kept as pets are not equipped to survive in the British countryside.
Escapes seem to be more problematic from outdoor enclosures, the way that some exotic amphibians are kept in the UK. Such escapes account for some populations of the marbled newt and alpine newt (as seen in this blog's banner), both continental species now established in the wild in Britain. In some cases, exotic pets are even deliberately released into the wild, even though this has long been illegal, with organisations like fellow Link member RSPCA having to rescue and rehome many of these animals – a task that is becoming increasingly more difficult with the increasing diversity of species and numbers of animals be kept.
Exotic animals in our countryside provoke a range of reactions. Many people take great pleasure from seeing them – there’s no question that parakeets are a striking sight in London’s parks, for instance. Yet history tells us that exotic species have their downsides too. Essentially, native wildlife can lose out.
Case studies from the Netherlands and the USA illustrate how serious this can be. The Dutch fire salamander population is on the brink of extinction, due to a fungal disease introduced inadvertently via the trade in Asian newts. Burmese pythons, frequently kept as pets, have established in Everglades National Park in Florida, with apparently devastating consequences for some mammals.
Whilst some exotic species quickly perish after introduction to the wild, others may persist, spread and become invasive. Yet it can be fiendishly tricky to predict whether a given species will become invasive. What’s more, it can take decades for effects to take hold and be detected.
Given this uncertainty, I think it’s best to take a precautionary approach. If we wait for severe damage to be spotted, it will be too late to do much about it, or at least it will become very costly. That’s why policy is geared towards prevention. Some argue that smarter regulation of the trade is imperative, but we can also take other action to prevent the risk of harm from exotic pets. Examples of awareness raising and good practice involving the pet trade are encouraging – for example the "Pet Code of Practice". Practical measures, such as increased biosecurity measures, are certainly needed too.
Wildlife and Countryside Link’s Invasive Non-native Species Group is working to ensure that we have effective legislation. A particular focus is the potential loss of EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation after Brexit – this restricts the import, keeping, transport, release, reproduction and sale of especially risky species. Aside from legislation, developments such as a Pathway Action Plan for exotic pets would be a great step forward, helping to manage the impacts more strategically. I hope that with concerted action like this, the benefits of keeping exotic pets responsibly will continue, and our native wildlife will escape the worst effects experienced in other countries.
Jim Foster
Conservation Director, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation
Follow ARC on twitter: @ARC_Bytes
Invasive Species Week 2018 runs from 23 - 29 March - check out all the action at #InvasivesWeek
The opinions expressed in this blog are the author's and not necessarily those of the wider Link membership.
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