The competition between introduced grey squirrels and native red squirrels creates welfare concerns for both species and a genuine ethical dilemma for conservation management.
The grey-red squirrel situation creates a genuine ethical tension between the welfare of individual grey squirrels subjected to lethal control and the conservation and welfare of red squirrel populations. Grey squirrels are intelligent, sentient animals who did not choose to be introduced and who suffer during lethal control operations. The ethical framework that justifies lethal grey squirrel control must account for their individual welfare while acknowledging the conservation obligation to native species. The development of humane alternatives including immunocontraception represents the most welfare-positive resolution — one that does not require choosing one species' welfare over another's.