Within Northern Ireland red squirrels are afforded protection under the Wildlife and Natural Environment Act (Northern Ireland) 2011. This makes it an offence to kill or take red squirrels by certain methods and to sell red squirrels.
Certain activities are permitted under licences granted by the appropriate Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation, i.e. the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. A survey licence is required if red squirrels are directly interfered with either through trapping and marking or interfering with their dreys. A survey licence is not required for indirect surveying techniques, e.g. visual surveys, drey counts, feeding sign surveys or hair tube surveys.
