'There's something up with my nuts': Prince Charles backs bid to help red squirrels stand tall by spiking the greys' food with contraceptives 

  • Prince Charles is 'committed to protecting the red squirrel across the UK'
  • Grey squirrels would not be killed but millions of pregnancies would be avoided
  • Research by the Animal and Plant Health Agency given government funding
  • Grey squirrel population could drop by 90 per cent and millions of broadleaf trees could also be saved

By Rebecca Taylor For Mailonline

Published: 06:42 EST, 24 February 2017 | Updated: 12:36 EST, 24 February 2017

Prince Charles has lent his support to a government-backed plan to sterilise grey squirrels and cut the population by more than 90 per cent in order to save the native red squirrel.

The Prince of Wales is said to approve of a scheme that would give grey squirrels a contraceptive that lasts several years, hidden inside chocolate spread, preventing millions of births.

No grey squirrels would be killed in the plans but the number of animals could reduce from 3.5 million to 300,000. 

Prince Charles is said to favour the plans because it is a more humane alternative to culling, as no grey squirrels will be killed

Prince Charles is said to favour the plans because it is a more humane alternative to culling, as no grey squirrels will be killed

Prince Charles is said to favour the idea as a more humane alternative to culling, according to the Times. 

The paper reports that the contraceptive is being developed by the government's Animal & Plant Health Agency with an initial funding of £39,000 from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Prince Charles set up the UK Squirrel Accord in 2014 as a way to bring organisations together to control the grey squirrel population across the country

Prince Charles set up the UK Squirrel Accord in 2014 as a way to bring organisations together to control the grey squirrel population across the country

The plans were discussed at Clarence House on Monday, with members of the UK Squirrel Accord, an initiative which Prince Charles established in 2014 to control grey squirrels. 

Sterilising the grey squirrel could also save millions of broadleaf trees, as the breed strips barks off trunks and branches, leading to their death when a full ring has been stripped off.

According to the Squirrel Accord website: 'The grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) was introduced to the UK from North America in 1876 and its population has grown rapidly since then.

'The problem of grey squirrels was first recognised in 1930 when a law was passed making it illegal to release a grey squirrel into the wild. Today it is estimated that could be as many as 3 million grey squirrels in the UK and this number continues to grow.'

The grey squirrel was first introduced from the USA as a feature for Victorian gardens but they have overtaken the red population

As well as reducing the numbers of red squirrels, left, which are native to the UK, the grey squirrel, right, rips bark from trees which means they die

The Accord's members include Defra, the Welsh and Scottish Governments, and Natural England among others, who have the aim of controlling the grey squirrel population. 

The contraceptive, which uses GonaCon as the active ingredient, has worked on rats and trials by the agency will use captive squirrels to try to show that smaller animals won't be able to enter the baited boxes. 

A Defra spokesman said: 'Red squirrels are a much-loved part of our national wildlife and the work of the Squirrel Accord’s members means that funding is in place and action is being taken to ensure their survival for future generations.'

The funding from Defra was followed up by £125,000 from other members of the Accord, and the government department thinks it will not be the main funder long-term. 

A Clarence House Spokesperson said: 'The Prince of Wales is committed to protecting the red squirrel across the UK and created the Squirrel Accord in order to address this issue. 

'However, the grey squirrel fertility control research and its funding, is not something The Prince of Wales or his charities, are directly involved in.' 

The Squirrel Accord declined to add further comment.

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