A WEST Somerset property which falls in the badger cull territory could be made into a nature reserve.

Save Me, a conservation charity set up by former Queen guitarist Brian May, is looking at the Chargot Estate in Exmoor National Park.

The £7 million shooting estate is up for private sale. If Save Me did purchase the property, it could dent Defra’s plans to continue the badger cull in West Somerset, but its location is not the main reason for the charity’s interest in purchasing the estate.

Anne Brummer, chief executive of Save Me, said: “We buy properties for conservation that are over 500 square acres.

“Our land agent alerted us to the property and is looking in to it for us.

“It does of course fall into the cullzone, but that is not a reason as to why we would be interested in purchasing it.

“We don’t purchase properties for emotional reasons, we purchase them to carry out our conservation work.

“A report will need to be complied first and we have to take into account many different things before I can even show it to Brian who will then say yes or no.”

Mr May has been an active opponent to the cull, which was rolled out in Somerset and Gloucestershire last year.

The rock legend even led a rally of 250 people at Somerset College last June against plants to kill badgers.

Save Me was set up in 2010 when David Cameron announced he would try and bring back fox hunting by repealing the ban.

The conservation charity now has five land holdings countrywide and as well as looking at Chargot Estate, is also looking at a large piece of land in Devon.

At this stage, only Save Me officials and staff have been involved in considering Chargot.