The Legal protection of Foxes in France and England and Wales

Abstract

The fox (vulpes vulpes) is a one wild mammal species which has historically been persecuted by humans throughout western Europe. The fox remains subject to such persecution even today due to a mixture of supposedly “cultural” traditions and its designation as an undesirable pest. Using the wildlife legal regimes in England and France as a lens, this article analyses how these two different national legal frameworks either restrict or permit acts of cruelty towards the fox.

Beginning with the French legal regime, this article discusses how the different parts of the French legal codes permit the fox to be killed for different reasons before analysing whether such grounds are underpinned by proper justifications and if associated conditions are properly checked and enforced.

The article then evaluates how well in reality the different wildlife welfare laws in the England protect the fox from the persecution permitted by the French legal regime. Such evaluation concludes by criticising the enforcement problems created by the patchwork nature of the English regime and the exceptions to welfare protections before suggesting reforms required to close such issues exposing the fox to unjustified exploitation.