Here is the response from Blenheim. Absolutely appalling and clearly the claims they make about this being handled carefully is a complete untruth given there are houses and cars splattered with blood in surrounding areas. I am sickened. Let’s keep sharing this petition and see if we can stop this outrage together.
Their response is here. you can also email them at customerservice@blenheimpalace.com. Please help try and stop this.
Good Morning Rachel,
Caring for the World Heritage Site for all who enjoy it sometimes means taking difficult decisions, including around the Canada geese which are non-native, introduced to the UK from North America. In the UK it is unusual for them to migrate and they tend to stay close to their breeding grounds, producing on average 5-6 eggs each spring.
We are proud to have a healthy population of Canada Geese at Blenheim and, in manageable numbers, their grazing forms a vital part of the SSSI ecosystem around the lakes but, left uncontrolled, they damage large area of vegetation, crops, vegetables, fruit and fisheries. In concentrated numbers, they facilitate disease amongst other wild birds and their mess presents a public health concern both on the ground and in the airspace (I suspect you are familiar with this).
We are not unique in this and controlling Canada Geese populations is covered by an open licence granted by Natural England - it is a problem many UK parks and gardens face.
We don't do this within the World Heritage Site (for many reasons including public safety) and prefer to cull once a year on open stubble fields when the crops have been harvested. All shooting takes place away from residential areas and for as short a period as practical – usually no more than 30 minutes.
Our highly skilled and trained team of game keepers have done this annually for many decades. No culling is sold, and the team take every care both before and after to ensure welfare is the number one priority.
It is a tough decision but one that is necessary to balance the fragile ecosystems which allows the SSSIs at Blenheim to flourish.