Mountain hare culling on grouse moors is a controversial practice carried out to reduce tick burden on grouse, with significant welfare implications for a protected species whose population is declining.
Large-scale mountain hare culls cause direct welfare harm through the killing of large numbers of animals using methods that may include snaring, shooting, and organised drives. Wounding rates in any large-scale shooting operation are a welfare concern. Mountain hares in heavily culled areas experience elevated population-level stress as individuals encounter repeated disturbance and habitat restriction. The welfare case against culls is compounded by the conservation concern — a species already in decline being removed from its habitat at scale. Alternative tick management strategies including acaricide treatment of grouse are available and could reduce the perceived need for hare culls.