An adult gannet

The Scottish Parliament’s Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee yesterday agreed to keep open the petition, which has been signed over 100,000 times.

The “guga hunt”, believed to date back to the 15th century, sees hundreds of young gannets – known as guga – killed and eaten.

Petition author Rachel Bigsby, a wildlife photographer, said the practice “is no longer tradition – it is blood sport”.

“This abhorrent cruelty dates back centuries, when island communities relied on seabirds for food, but today it is not a necessity,” she said.

“Despite catastrophic losses from avian influenza and unimaginable daily threats, the hunt continues.”

Scottish animal welfare charity OneKind has welcomed MSPs’ decision to keep the petition open.

OneKind CEO Jason Rose said: “The clubbing to death of baby gannets in 2026, in the name of ‘tradition’, is cruel and needless.

“We stand firmly behind Rachel Bigsby’s petition calling for an end to the hunt and have provided supporting evidence to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee. 

“The ongoing killing of young gannets on Sula Sgeir is only legally permitted because of an outdated exemption in wildlife legislation. But hundreds of thousands individuals have spoken – it is time for this exemption to go.

“We commend the committee for recognising both the significance of this issue and the strong public support for change, by choosing to keep the petition open into the next parliamentary session.

“We call on the incoming Scottish Parliament and government to end the suffering, and put an end to this unjustifiable hunt.

“It is a historic practice that has been recorded in books and films, so as part of the heritage of Ness it won’t be forgotten, but it is time for the suffering to stop.”