A hunt group in England will no longer participate in trail hunting following concerns that wild animals could be attacked and killed.
Per the Isle of Wight County Press, the Hunting Act banned hunters in the United Kingdom from using dogs to kill most wild mammals in 2004.
Hunt supporters told the BBC that the ban could affect livelihoods in rural communities. However, there are reportedly still 170 hound packs in England and Wales.
Since the ban went into effect, trail hunting has been used to simulate traditional foxhunting by training hounds to follow scents such as animal urine, according to The Environmental Defense Initiative. Trail hunting remains controversial among some groups that claim hounds will still kill wild animals by mistake.
However, one hunt group has recently made changes. The County Press reported that Isle of Wight Hounds, formerly called the Isle of Wight Foxhounds, will use drag hunting instead of trail hunting.
Unlike trail hunting, drag hunting uses a scent laid by humans rather than animals, such as aniseed. The Wight Hunt Sabs, a group dedicated to protecting wildlife, said the switch to drag hunting is much-needed progress.
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"We will continue to keep an eye on things over the coming months and hope that this is a step in the right direction for all concerned," a spokesperson for Wight Hunt Sabs told the County Press.
A national survey showed that there were 14.4 million hunters and nearly 40 million anglers above the age of 16 in the United States. However, hunting numbers in the U.S. have been declining for years.
Officials in other nations, such as Switzerland, have enacted strict bans on certain hunting practices that help preserve biodiversity. According to the United Nations, climate change and humans' use of land are other factors driving biodiversity loss.
The League Against Cruel Sports has pushed for the strengthening of the Hunting Act, which includes banning trail hunting. Meanwhile, the group said accidental killings in drag hunting are rare because the scents of wild animals are not involved.
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