Farmers and landowners in the Southern Edge Area are being asked to collect badger carcasses to help a bovine TB research project.
APHA and the University of Nottingham are currently conducting research to detect the presence and location of TB infection in badgers in the area.
The project started in April 2021 and is ongoing until they reach 100 viable carcasses per county, which includes Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Hampshire and East Sussex.
Farmer volunteers can help locate and collect badger carcasses, which are then collected by a specialist courier and taken to the University of Nottingham.
The carcasses will then be tested and if the collector would like to be notified, they could also receive the TB test result.
The carcasses are not frozen, and APHA offers a contribution of £25 towards any personal expenses associated with collection of badger carcasses for the study.
From April 2021–August 2022, 436 carcasses have been submitted with 350 undergoing post-mortem examinations.
TB test results are continuing to be confirmed, with collectors being informed and can be viewed on the newsletter map.
The study has reached the target number of collections in East Sussex and Oxfordshire, so farmers do not need to collect any further carcasses in these areas as they will no longer be accepted.
The study still requires greater numbers of submissions in Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, and Hampshire.
