Wildlife management
Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) wildlife team are responsible for the implementation of many aspects of legislation relating to native and exotic wildlife in Northern Ireland. This team also manage the licensing of local zoos and the private keeping of certain exotic wild animals.
Wildlife protection
The primary role of the legislation is to protect those wild species deemed conservation sensitive and/or historically persecuted. NIEA has the power to issue licenses to allow some otherwise prohibited actions to be taken to resolve problems where there is no other satisfactory solution. The licensing system safeguards the conservation and welfare of wild animals but provides a way to allow action to be taken where necessary.
Further guidance into Northern Ireland's wildlife law can be found in this booklet