Queen - Brian May Loses Badger Cull Battle

Queen star Brian May has been left saddened and frustrated after he lost a bid to stop a badger cull in his native Britain.

The animal-loving rocker has spent months campaigning against government plans to reduce the country's badger population as part of an ongoing battle to stop the spread of bovine tuberculosis to cattle.

May set up a petition and gathered more than 167,000 signatures, but U.K. politicians announced this week (beg25Feb13) that they plan to press ahead with culls in the English counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset in a bid to protect the area's dairy farming industry.

The musician says of the decision, "My initial reaction was sadness really, and a certain amount of frustration, obviously, and kind of despondency... Everybody thought that because we won the debate (in the House of Commons), that the cull was off, but it's not. It's never been so. The government has never taken its foot off the pedal... I think it's very, very sad... This is a tragedy for Britain's wildlife... I think it's disastrous and a tragedy."