Wildlife in Scotland is protected by a range of national and international legislation.
These laws are designed to protect rare and vulnerable species and make it unlawful to kill, injure, take or sell certain species of wild animals, plants and birds.
However, it is also recognised that there are certain circumstances, for example, to protect public health and safety, or to prevent serious damage to agriculture, where it is desirable to licence acts which would otherwise be unlawful.
In all cases, the appropriate licensing authority (Scottish Ministers or Scottish Natural Heritage) will only issue a licence under certain circumstances defined in the legislation.