Innholdsfortegnelse for 23-Dec-2015 i Shooting Times & Country

LAST MONTH WE walked up the bit of our shoot that holds woodcock for the first time this season. We had taken the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust’s advice to wait until after the November full moon to make it less likely that we would be bagging our resident birds (see p.26). We were delighted to put up about a dozen woodcock in a single copse that was only a few acres. It goes to show that density depends on location and therefore the decision about what to shoot should be based on local numbers. All 12 birds we flushed to our four Guns were out of range, but we will probably shoot that wood a couple more times before the end of the season, so hopefully we will have…

A new RSPB study has placed the curlew — a bird that benefits from land managed for shooting — on its red list of birds of highest conservation concern. The study, led by RSPB Scotland and called Birds of Conservation Concern 4, says the curlew is now the highest conservation priority bird species in the UK. Dan Brown, conservation adviser with RSPB Scotland, and lead author of the study, said: “The curlew emerges as our highest priority species from a global perspective – conservation success in the UK will go a long way to helping secure the global population.” Curlew numbers are stable on many shoots across the country, such as those previously reported on in Northern Ireland, detailed as part of BASC’s Green Shoots Mapping System (News, 2 September).…

Paralympian scheme gains further support British Shooting has partnered with national governing body Disability Shooting Great Britain (DSGB) to develop further the existing support for disabled shooters. The partnership will bolster the Disability Hub Club scheme, which was set up to identify athletes with the potential to become Paralympians. It aims to do so by developing a network of clubs that both encourage disabled people to become involved with the sport and to create better links between the clubs themselves and DSGB programmes. For further information, visit www.britishshooting.org.uk. NI certificates set to rise in February The Police Service of Northern Ireland has confirmed that the cost of granting a firearms certificate will rise on 22 February 2016. The previously reported increase (News, 19 August) means that a five-year certificate will…

I am frustrated that often the only stories about shooting that do get out, and the only topic that will attract the mainstream and social media, is when some monumental fool among us breaks the law. With Durham Constabulary now investigating yet another shot raptor — a peregrine falcon (right) this time — the shooting community has, through the actions of an individual, given more ammunition to the loud antifieldsports lobby. We all know that banning shoots would be devastating for wildlife. The anti-shooting faction are blinkered to this. To them, shooters are the source of all that goes wrong in the countryside. We must be seen to be the custodians of the countryside that we keep insisting we are. We must not allow a small minority to continue to…

Chris Peacey (above) and Vicky Hampton run the keepering side of the shoot, with Chris looking after the pest control and Vicky taking care of feeding the birds. “My great-uncle John Ridout was a keeper in Norfolk and I picked up tips from him,” said Chris. “I helped out the former keeper at Midgham, Rob Flett, until his death eight years ago. I used to beat at Midgham and when Rob passed away I became a hobby keeper here. “We buy our birds in as poults. I like Michigan blues because I think they fly well. Some years we have a mixture that has an interesting combination of characteristics. We have tried covercrops, but it is mostly meadow. The ground is very wet and it’s difficult for covercrops to prosper.…

Unlike pheasants and partridges, you cannot help woodcock directly by feeding them. However, there are things that you can do to make their environment better. Woodcock usually choose to nest in fairly open floored woodland, with a little overhead cover, typically siting their nests at the base of trees, under a fallen branch or sprig of bramble. Once they hatch, they tend to move into areas with a denser understorey, where the chicks feed on various invertebrates; mainly spiders and beetles for the first 10 days, with increasing numbers of worms from then on. So promoting diversity in woodland structure is likely to help. Wide rides are good for courtship displays. Where the canopy is dense and there is little undergrowth, thinning should promote more ground cover, and thus improve…

HALF A CENTURY of observing the British shooting field has led me to the conclusion that on a typical driven shoot, the people who have the most fun are the beaters. The pickers-up enjoy themselves, too, but their job comes with a great deal of responsibility. The Guns all pretend they are enjoying themselves, but they have the constant concerns of missing good birds, and getting frustrated when the pheasants fly over everybody else’s peg rather than theirs. What’s more, they are almost certainly paying for the privilege of shooting, while the beaters are being paid. Similar comments can also be made about the canine participants in a shooting day. A beating dog has a great deal of freedom to hunt and have a good time, while the picking-up dog…

BILL HARRIMAN BASC’s head of firearms and global authority on guns MAT MANNING Airgunner and journalist from the West Country BRUCE POTTS Shooting Timesrifle reviewer and stalker DAVID TOMLINSON Highly regarded writer and ornithologist LIAM BELL Shropshire gamekeeper and keen wildfowler GRAHAM DOWNING Shooting consultant and sporting author PAUL RAWLINGS Gundog expert and A-panel spaniel judge CHRIS DE CANI Riverkeeper, with specialist knowledge of chalkstreams TONY BUCKWELL Veterinary surgeon with a special interest in gundogs TONY JACKSON A game Shot, keen stalker and former editor of Shooting Times TOM PAYNE Professional shooting instructor and avid pigeon shooter SIMON WHITEHEAD Author, professional ferreter and rabbit controller IAIN WATSON Keen stalker and senior CIC international trophy judge Contact the team Email: stanswers@timeinc.com By post: Shooting Times, Blue Fin Building,…

Last year an estimated 250,000 people turned out to support the Boxing Day meets of foxhounds: it’s the most popular meet of the season, and it’s the only one that invariably gets coverage on the television news. Many packs meet at the same traditional location on Boxing Day every year, and have done so for decades. The Heythrop Hunt, for example, meets in Chipping Norton Square, and always attracts hundreds of supporters and foot followers along with numerous horses and riders. If you’re not shooting on Boxing Day and want to walk off the excess of turkey and Christmas pudding, there’s nothing better than following the hounds. The Masters of Foxhounds Association (MFA) has details of all of its 176 affiliated packs on its website with contact details, including telephone…

DON’T SHOOT The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) is asking people to curb their woodcock shooting this winter in areas where the birds are known to breed. Resident woodcock numbers are in decline (News, 11 November) and the birds are at greater risk of starvation and predation during cold spells. The GWCT advises a shooting break of seven days once the temperature drops below 0°Celsius. HUNT MEET Last year, 250,000 people turned out to support their local hunt on the traditional Boxing Day meet. Why not be one of them this year? READ The Country Sportsman’s Record Book & Journal, by John Humphreys, with illustrations by John Paley (Harper Fine Angling Books, RRP £34). Reprinted due to popular demand, this invaluable journal from the former Shooting Timeswriter is returning…

The former president of the League Against Cruel Sports (LACS), John Cooper, has said he was removed from his position after standing up for bullied staff. Mr Cooper said that he “clashed significantly” with a number of trustees, including chairman Iain Blake Lawson. In a public statement, he explained: “Earlier this year, I was made aware by certain members of staff of allegations of bullying, misconduct and mismanagement in the League. I was told by a number of staff members that their concerns were brought to the attention of trustees but nothing was done. “I was asked by some members of staff to bring these and other allegations to the attention of management and trustees in my capacity as president so that they could be fully examined, and decisions could…

On 3 December, a private prosecution against six members of the Lamerton Hunt collapsed in a manner so dramatic that it may have ramifications for the way all private prosecutions are brought in the UK (see News, p.6). It was the only outstanding case brought under the 2004 Hunting Act against a registered hunt that related to the past two hunting seasons. It was so important to the League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) that it invested a huge amount of donated charitable funds to pursue it. The case began in a police station in Devon. I reviewed the evidence presented by LACS with the wildlife officer for Devon and Cornwall. Having looked at the videos, I told him I could see no evidence that would lead to a reasonable suspicion…

It was an unseasonably mild and drizzly morning, and I knew that whichever jacket I wore, I’d still end up steaming, or at the very least, getting hot and clammy around the collar, for though our little roughshoot is a thoroughly informal affair, I still like to turn-out in a tweed tie. After a welcoming yarn with guests, we knocked back a dram of something boozy from shoot-partner Jim’s “lucky dip” drinks basket, and mustered for the briefing. It struck me then that Jim and I had better put on a half-decent day, for our team had travelled from far and wide: South Dorset, Warwickshire, Rutland and, farthest of all, from the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. Jim explained the rules of engagement. For the time being, wild…

You would think that a good place to site a trap would remain that for ever. Not so. Not in the short term anyway, and as keepers on both high and low ground continue to get stuck into the winter trapping regime, just where to put them is vital to the success of the exercise. Every keeper will know which traps have caught what over the past 12 months, or even years for that matter, and it can be puzzling to figure out why a trap which did so well at one time is simply not doing the job any more. Move it a short distance and once more its tally mounts. But why does a wall corner or tunnel on a hedge become the place not to go? It…

A convoy of vehicles made its way through the damp Dumfriesshire countryside of the Queensberry estate, where the 2015 International Gundog League Retriever Championship, sponsored by Skinner’s Dog Food, was about to unfold. We were there, from 30 November to 2 December, at the invitation of the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, who welcomed us to the estate before we descended on the Morton Mains beat. Once there, Rab Clark and David Lisett had us all lined out and ready to begin the trial. There was a fine but persistent rain falling as we started out, with the line split on either side of a small lochan where two swans glided and completely ignored the crowds, the dogs and the sound of shots. The ground was a mixture of rushes,…

While the Germans like their dogs to “give tongue”, it’s always been frowned upon here in Britain. The only breed allowed to bark when hunting is the Sussex spaniel, a trait that the Kennel Club tried to outlaw some years ago, though without success. However, Sussex owners will tell you that their spaniels are only meant to bark when they have roused their quarry, presumably as a warning to the Guns that game is on its way. Simply barking for the sheer fun of being out hunting is strictly forbidden. My first springer, Penny, was a noisy hunter. I belonged to a small syndicate where we stood for one drive, then walked for the next, but because both my spaniel and I liked hunting, not standing, I generally walked. The…

At this time of year the sky will be “chucking it down” as some are wont to say. But there are other regional terms for heavy rain. Robert Macfarlane’s book Landmarks, published earlier this year, features a handy glossary of words used throughout the UK and Ireland to describe precipitation of the stormy variety. For instance, in Galloway, Scotland, to rain heavily or noisily is called “blatter”, while in the Irish language it is known as “bachram”, which literally means “boisterous behaviour”. In Ireland it is also known as “clagarnach”, which describes noisy rain on an iron roof. In East Anglia, to be drenched in a heavy shower is called “basking”, while a particularly wet day in Northamptonshire is known as “bashy”. Other terms for raining hard across England include…

I found myself shouting at the radio the other day. I think I am turning into my father. (In fact, I don’t think my father ever shouts at the radio, but perhaps he ought to.) I was venting because the presenter was trying to blame a government minister for the awful flooding in north-west England and south-west Scotland. Yep, 14 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Shap, Cumbria and the Tory Government is to blame. Of course it is. I actually predicted this. Not the rain — which was truly unprecedented and put a lot of my own fields under water — but the reaction. “You wait and see,” I told a colleague, as the full scale of the devastation began to achieve maximum media coverage. “Once the…

9 JANUARY GLAD RAGS AND CARTRIDGE BAGS FULL DRIVEN DAY Castle Fraser Farms, Dunecht, Aberdeenshire Tel 07841 393155 10 JAN UARY SURREY WILDLIFE TRUST WETLAND BIRDS COURSE Nutfield Marsh, Surrey Tel 01372 379523 14 JANUARY NOTTINGHAM FARMING CONFERENCE 2016 University of Nottingham’s Sutton Bonington Campus, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire Tel 01159 516075 16 JANUARY BASC YOUNG SHOTS ROUGH DAY Glenample estate, Lochearnhead, Perthshire Tel 01350 723226 17 JANUARY GAME MEAT HYGIENE COURSE John O’Leary Centre, Marquis Drive, Cannock, Staffordshire Tel 01833 660869 20 JANUARY LAMMA 2016 AGRICULTURAL AND MACHINERY SHOW East of England Showground, Alwalton, Peterborough Tel 07815 003 217…

A Stirlingshire land manager has been fined after one of his gamekeepers admitted trapping a buzzard. Graham Christie, who owns Dunmhor Sporting in Kingussie, was ordered to pay £3,200 after a court heard gamekeeper James O’Reilly felt “pressure” to target the birds. This makes Mr Christie, who had been in Cuba at the time the buzzard was trapped, only the second person to be convicted over the crimes of his gamekeeper under the “vicarious liability” laws introduced in 2012. Mr O’Reilly pleaded guilty to illegal trapping and improper use of snares in May after a buzzard was found caught in a gin trap — which are banned in Britain — on the 5,000-acre Cardross estate. David McKie, defending Mr Christie, described the law as “a very political piece of legislation…

NO PRESSURE On Thursday, 3 December, the Sporting Irish Water Spaniel Club held its any variety retriever novice stakes for 12 dogs at Chillington Hall, Staffordshire, by kind permission of John Giffard. This picture (above) was taken at the start of the first drive and, as you can see, the Gun was under no pressure at all! The trial was won by a Labrador dog, Artistryn Ufin, owned and handled by Roger Clover. N. Rice, by email WAKE-UP CALL FOR ANIMAL CHARITIES Can you imagine the almighty fuss the League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) would have made had the defence in the civil prosecution of the Lamerton called an expert witness who was, say, friends with one of the hunt’s Joint-Masters? Let us hope that the collapse of this latest…

Starting the day with a full English breakfast is always sensible. Sporting agent Howard Day and six Guns fortified themselves in the Augustus John pub on the outskirts of Fordingbridge before setting off down a long, single-track lane that leads to nearby Midgham Farm where a warm welcome and a delightful day’s shooting are assured. The shoot, which is owned by Sammy and Henry Sykes, has been in the same family since the 18th century and is bisected by the Hampshire Avon. On this particular day, towards the tail end of November, the team gathered for morning coffee in the spacious lodge adjacent to the house, which is worth a look in itself. It is bedecked with numerous hunting trophies that Sammy and Henry’s son, Oliver, has accrued despite still…

One of the oldest bits of advice in shooting is to find a gun that suits you down to the ground and stick with it, forsaking all others until death do you part. As advice goes, it’s still as good as it gets. Ideally, we would find our perfect partner at the first time of asking but, of course, life isn’t always so accommodating. Settling on the right one is almost always a case of trial and error. Yet would we have it any other way? Variety, after all, is the spice of life and there’s a mass of fun to be had out of buying, trying and swapping different guns in this quest for sporting happiness. Some people — to the cheers of gunshop owners everywhere — never do…

There is nothing like the cry of “woodcock forward” to get the Guns excited, and everyone is fascinated by this elusive bird. The fact that it is a wader, more closely allied to curlews, snipe and plovers, than to the likes of pheasants and blackgrouse, sets it apart. That wonderful camouflaged plumage sets it apart, too, and is no accident; it indicates a palatable bird — a woodcock is tastier than a woodpecker! Woodcock have been in the news lately, and readers will be only too aware that there is strong evidence of a decline in our home breeding population, with consequent calls for a ban on shooting from our detractors ( News , 28 October). Before we examine whether such a ban is justified, let’s look at a little…

Date: 30 November to 2 December Venue: Queensberry estate By invitation of: Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry Judges (above): Neil Black, Nigel Rowson, Mike Tallamy and Steven Polley Chief steward: Philip Wainwright Steward of the beat: Rab Clark Sponsor: Roger Skinner Ltd Entries: 54 (34 dogs & 20 bitches / 52 Labradors & 2 golden retrievers) Guns: David Lisett, Rab Clark, Zander Aitken, Peter Fawcett, Jon Bailey, Eddie Scott, Ian Openshaw, Andy Skinner, Steve Commer, John Palmer Winner: Lady Celina Carter’s Labrador FTCh Asterix Aguzannis of Chatsworthhandled by John Halstead. Second: Andy Latham’s Labrador FTCh Rimrock Hurricane Third: Peter Goddard’s Labrador Carltonstar Toby Diplomas of Merit: • Annette Clarke’s Labrador Garron point Avoca • Nigel Carville’s Labrador Int FTCh Waysgreen Apollo • Stephanie Smith’s Labrador FTCh Snowdell Spender • The…

I was recently giving a lecture on World War I — a topical subject in one of its centennial years — when someone in the audience asked why the rifle of the British troops was known as a Lee-Enfield. He understood that it had been designed at the government arsenal at Enfield in North London, but he did not know the significance of the “Lee” bit. The designer, aged 12 I was pleased to enlighten him — James Paris Lee was one of the most important designers in firearms history. He was born in Hawick, Scotland, in 1831 and emigrated to Canada (like many Scots) with his parents in 1836. His first foray into the field of firearms came when he was 12. He obtained the barrel of an old…