Innholdsfortegnelse for 16-Mar-2016 i Shooting Times & Country

IT IS DIFFICULT to tell what Brexit would mean for the countryside. However, one thing is certain, British farmers would no longer receive the single farm payment. It would therefore be up to the political parties and ultimately the British people to decide whether subsidies would continue. Clearly farming is a unique industry, making products vital to national security and stewardship of the land. It also holds the fabric of the rural community together. It is essential that small family farms are supported, but will the mostly urban population see the sense of that? On the other hand, it seems that the fear of economic meltdown after Brexit is being overplayed in some quarters. When Shooting Times asked some of the shooting industry’s key players their views, they were relaxed…

The National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) has received funding to support its work for the next four years. In January, concerns arose among ministers that the unit would be forced to close and the Prime Minister was asked to step in to save it (News, 20 January). But environment minister Rory Stewart last month confirmed that the Government will continue to provide £136,000-a-year for the next four years, while DEFRA will grant an additional £29,000-a-year to tackle online wildlife crime. He said: “This will give the unit significant financial stability and enable its vital work to continue until at least 2020.” The NWCU also receives funding from the national Police Chiefs Council, the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland administration. Glynn Evans, BASC’s lead on wildlife crime, commented: “We work…

WHCT grant benefits wigeon The Wildlife Habitat Charitable Trust (WHCT), which was set up by BASC, has donated €30,000 to a conservation project to help boost declining wigeon numbers. The money will be used to map and improve habitats on sites in Belarus and Lithuania, which are crucial to restoring the wigeon population. Tim Russell, BASC conservation director, said: “These projects show that shooters really do care about conservation.” Hedgehog petition gains support A petition launched by Sutton and Devonport MP Oliver Colvile to make hedgehogs, whose numbers are in decline, a protected species has now passed the 10,000-signature mark, meaning that ministers will now have to give a response. HM the Queen’s pigeon is rescued Scottish SPCA officers last month rescued a lost racing pigeon in Haddington, East Lothian,…

Who are you and what do you do? My role is design team manager, which involves designing fabrics, garments and accessories — and the unenviable job of travelling the world to test out the garments while hunting! What does a typical week involve for you? A lot of talking, to be honest. There’s feedback from existing customers and enquiries from new ones. While hunting is our primary focus, we also design and make highly specialised commercial garments for a variety of customers worldwide — armed special forces, police rapid response teams and helicopter pilots. So one moment I’m designing a sleeve to allow extra movement for a rifle shooter, then it’s a technical arc-flash suit to protect a worker at the top of a 240,000-volt power pylon. What would you…

“The student declared that it was better than being on an RSPB or Wildlife Trust nature reserve. I hope he tells his tutors and friends” There was much to do on our little wild bird shoot in February. As I scribe these notes at dusk on the last Sunday of that month, my cheeks are still tingling from a bitter north-easterly that’s cut across the farm all weekend, but that drying wind has enabled me to tick off everything on the month’s “must do” list. Complete roe doe cull — done; paint three new high-seats dark green and erect them overlooking foxy spots, ready for the seasonal predator control campaign — done; check for active rat holes along the best grey partridge nesting hedgerows with our Border terrier Betty, and…

“Some of the more mature male crossbills were a stunning bright crimson” It’s a pretty mundane job trying to get the last rabbit coming into an unfenced plantation, but it has its compensations. You will be aware that the weather has not been great “up north” for some time; it seems an age actually. However, we managed to string three days of dry, frosty weather together, which is a record for 2016 to date. I did this task myself as the area in question, close to the village, is quite busy with dog walkers, so it’s a first-light start. There is a nice heather allotment that rises from the edge of the plantation and when I was there on the middle of the three days in question, the dawn was…

RAIN: FOUR WALKS IN ENGLISH WEATHERby Melissa Harrison This slim volume is a tribute to Britain’s national obsession: the weather or, more specifically, rain. The author, who is an award-winning novelist and the Nature Notebook columnist in The Times, takes us on four walks — across Wicken Fen, Shropshire, the Darent Valley and Dartmoor — in four different seasons to note “how the English countryside looks, smells and sounds, and the way the living things in it behave” when it rains. It’s testament to her writing talent that Harrison makes getting caught in a downpour seem strangely enticing… £12.99 (hardback); ISBN 9780571328932; www.faber.co.uk RAPTOR: A JOURNEY THROUGH BIRDS by James Macdonald Lockhart This is an engaging look at the UK’s breeding birds of prey by an author who…

1 BARREL Steel barrels, 29½in, 2½in (65mm) chambers, left barrel full-choke, right barrel cylinder 2 DECORATION Simple borderline with a leaf-style pattern around the fences 3 ACTION Break-open, double-trigger non-ejector sidelock with auto-safe 4 STOCK Unusual “semi-swan neck” pistol-grip stock, conventional fore-end, plain walnut WHAT TO LOOK FOR Barrels:The usual checks for pits and dents; guns like this were often a little neglected, especially during later years Action:Any break-open shotgun can shoot loose, so check fit of barrels to action and examine for hammer marks indicating bodged repairs Weight: 6¾lb Value: Side-by-sides like this are very much out of fashion, so £40 to £50. Before World War II, if you could not afford to buy an English gun there was the option…

There’s something evocative about the melancholy song of the mistle thrush, delivered from the top of a tree as it defies the windy weather of March. There’s no repetition of phrases — as you hear from a song thrush — and the tone is not as pure as that of a blackbird, but the song of the mistle thrush (or storm cock) carries for hundreds of yards. Mistle thrushes nest a couple of weeks earlier than these other two thrushes, fuelling late-winter nest building and egg production by eating the berries of holly, mistletoe and ivy. The species is red-listed, in recognition of a 59 per cent decline, which is thought to be linked to reduced survival of juveniles. Young birds are most likely to be affected by winter food…

Now that another game season has ended how has your gundog performed? Whether it was your dog’s first season or you have a more experienced shooting companion, problems can arise at any time, and we are here to assist. We have joined up with Neil Varney, who currently writes the gundog column for Shooting Times. Neil is a recognised Kennel Club judge for both Spaniels and Retrievers and the host and spaniel trainer for both the Wiltshire and Dorset Clubs. With Neil’s expert help, we are offering you the opportunity to train your gundog over the next few months, iron out any problems or introduce them to working in the field, get advice and prepare for the next season. Also on hand will be representatives from Quest to advise on…

“The UK is a very important market for all European brands and this will not change if we leave the EU” A“Brexit” would have little or no major impact on UK firearms ownership, according to shooting industry leaders. While the 23 June in-out referendum on the UK’s continued membership of the European Union (EU) could have consequences for the agricultural industry (News, 9 March) and the environment (News, 10 February), the shooting industry has less to worry about. Liam Stokes, head of shooting campaigns at the Countryside Alliance, said that much depends on what a post-Brexit Government decides to do. “We know that firearms legislation in the UK is among the strictest and tightest in the world, and certainly exceeds what is required by the EU Firearms Directive, so regardless…

IN THE GARDEN The weather is — in theory — starting to warm up and you should tend to your garden accordingly. You can open your greenhouse or conservatory doors again to vent the heat on warm days, and remove pond heaters. Instead, put the pond fountain back on and start feeding the fish again. EAT Cauliflower is in season at the moment, and this versatile vegetable can be put to many good uses, including as part of a piccalilli to accompany a wild rabbit and leek turnover. Visit Shooting UK at po.st/recipe16 for the recipe. BID A Tallett-engraved .275 bolt-magazine sporting rifle made by W. J. Jeffrey & Co. will be auctioned tomorrow (Thursday, 17 March) to raise funds for the Gunmakers’ Company Charitable Trust. The rifle is just…

The Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt celebrated its 200th anniversary by returning to its “spiritual home” last month. The hunt met at the Crown Inn, in Marston Montgomery, for the first time in more than 50 years, having stopped meeting there in the early 1960s. Ten-year-old beater Michael Ansell (pictured) raised £3,000 for Macmillan Nurses and Cancer Research UK in sponsorship for shaving his head last month. Dad Buster, keeper on several Sussex shoots, thanked the shoot teams, beaters and pickers-up who sponsored Michael. Scottish conservation charities have warned that red squirrels could be wiped out in a generation, unless immediate action is taken to halt the spread of greys. The National Trust for Scotland says a cull is required, while some conservationists are calling on landowners to make woodlands…

JOINT RESPONSIBILITY I was appalled, though not surprised, to read the comments made by Police and Crime Commissioner Ann Barnes regarding Kent firearms licensing and how certificates should be paid for (News, 2 March). BASC is correct in that she has a responsibility to every member of the public in that county including licence-holders, who are among her most law-abiding and honest citizens. Ms Barnes clearly believes that licence-holders should carry the full cost of any grant or renewal and the taxpayer should not be required to support our hobby. She forgets that firearms licensing is imposed upon certificate-holders by the public and the guardians of society such as the politicians and police, and as such the taxpayer should contribute to the process. Security, cabinets, conditions and land checks, for…

“The woodpigeon is a truly sporting bird, one that offers the shooter every possible shooting angle” So many pigeon shooters forget to practise when they get the chance, only to suffer inconsistent results when they shoot from a hide. I find this lack of preparation confusing. Shooting pigeon can be expensive if you take into consideration the price of kit, cartridges and fuel for reconnaissance trips. I’m not saying that you have to shoot like a god, but to shoot to the best of your ability is important, not least for your own enjoyment. For many pigeon shooters the prospect of having to visit a clay ground or to have a lesson is daunting. I think this is mainly due to the mistaken belief that their shooting is going to…

Cumbrian Bob Merrin has taught me a great deal, particularly about the rabbiting game, and he always has one of his home-made mole traps close to hand. A trap has to be humane and operate in accordance with the law. Anyone can make a mole trap — you do not need approval under the Spring Traps Approval Order. The trap must be designed to ensure a minimum of suffering to the mole and a quick fatal outcome. The trap Bob showed me how to make is an adaptation of those that the late Bill Troughton used to make. Bill originally made his out of ash, but the ash used to rot, so when he spotted some yellow gas pipe on a farm one day he used that instead. This material…

TWO WEEKS AGO this column (Gundogs, 2 March) looked at the winners and losers in the annual registrations of pedigree dogs. The winners included the bracco Italiano and the cocker spaniel, plus the Hungarian vizsla and its wirehaired cousin, while the losers included several of our traditional favourites, ranging from the Labrador to the English springer spaniel. There are, however, a number of breeds that, against all the odds, are holding steady, and others that are slipping towards possible extinction. Statistics can be misleading, and don’t forget that wonderful phrase “Lies, damned lies, and statistics”. However, they do make an interesting study, and it’s worth remembering when you consider numbers of registrations of pedigree dogs that, overall, such numbers are down. Thus a breed that is showing an increasing number…

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,…

“Aggressive drunks should not be allowed to possess guns. Being drunk is no excuse for threatening behaviour” What would you do if you found out that somebody who is not fit to be in possession of firearms has a shotgun or firearms certificate? Naturally, as a responsible citizen, you should report your concerns to the police. But is life really as simple as that? Just look at that report into the BBC and the Jimmy Savile affair. It turns out that loads of people knew that Savile was a wrong ’un. So why did he get away with it? It was partly because he was too big to bring down. Those who were genuinely horrified by his antics were too scared to say anything, or thought that they would be…

19 -20 MARCH THE WEST OF ENGLAND GAME FAIR 2016 The Royal Bath & West of England Society, The Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset Tel 01392 421500 4 APRIL RIVER COTTAGE GARDEN OPEN DAY River Cottage HQ, Axminster, Devon Tel 01297 630300 8-10 APRIL BASC INTRODUCTION TO GAMEKEEPING WEEKEND Newton Rigg College, Penrith, Cumbria Tel 01768 893613 28 APRIL THE WEST OF ENGLAND GAME FAIR 2016 Rhug Estate, Corwen, Denbighshire Tel 01833 660869 30 APRIL THE 2016 FEMMES FATALES CLAYSHOOTING CUP Royal Berkshire Shooting School, Pangbourne, Berkshire Tel 01491 672900 6-7 MAY GWCT/BASC SHOOTING FOR THE FUTURE COURSE Allerton Project Visitor Centre, Loddington, Leicestershire Tel 01425 651013…

Like many other children, for the first five years of my life my father was serving in World War II. I lived with my mother in Buckinghamshire and we were luckier than most because, periodically, brown parcels containing a rabbit or a brace of partridges would arrive to augment our otherwise spartan diet. The gifts, I later discovered, were from my maternal grandfather, Harry William Meering, a gamekeeper. Sometime in 1945, when my father was demobbed and back home, we went on what seemed to me, aged five, a major expedition across the country to meet my grandfather and benefactor for what turned out to be the only time in my life. Shortly afterwards, my mother died and we moved south to join up with my father’s relatives. I lost…

My current kit from Night Master includes the Apex XD75 thermal scope, Pulsar Digisight LRF N870 night vision scope and the Quantum XD38S and XD50S thermal monoculars/spotters. Once I set up my target, I step out my usual 100 yards for zeroing-in or checking zero on my Tikka .243. When setting up any thermal scope, the best way is to use a piece of MDF board with a 1in hole in it and a hand warmer pad stuck over the hole at the back of the board. That gives you the required heat source for your point of aim. I’ve found that the Hothands warmers are the best because they can take four or five hits before losing the required heat signature. The Apex XD75 thermal scope comes with a…

The nation’s favourite bird, the woodpigeon, offers the shooter every possible shot in the book. From a clayshooting point of view, if you were to shoot a Sporting round there are always certain targets that give you a base score. Look at them as the birds that shouldn’t be missed. This is the same with your pigeon shooting. However, some shooters don’t give their full concentration to the bird because they think it’s an easy shot and they end up missing it. 1 THE COMPLETELY COMMITTED DECOYED PIGEON This is the bird that has fully committed to the picture you have shown it and has full confidence coming straight in, landing gear down. As the shooter, make sure that you give this bird the respect it deserves; this is a…

“The spaniels love vole hunting but I encourage voles for the barn owls” Do you regard exercising your dog or dogs as a pleasure or a chore? I’m sure that on a filthy winter’s morning, with the rain lashing down, most of us can think of other things we’d rather be doing. But on balance, I regard walking my dogs as one of the pleasures of ownership. It’s certainly one way of ensuring that I not only get out of the house, but also enjoy the fresh air. The spaniels usually start their day with a walk in our three-and-a-half acre paddock. It’s rough grassland and I manage the grass at a variety of levels to encourage the local vole population. Some areas are cut every year, others not at…

A roadside verge — that grassy border or strip of grass that runs alongside fields and lanes — has a variety of names across the world, but do you know what it is called in Lincolnshire? According to Dominick Tyler’s Uncommon Ground, it is “marfer”. The word is also listed in Margaret Gelling and H. D. G. Foxall’s The Place-Names of Shropshire, where it is defined as a “boundary furrow”. Once upon a time such grassy verges were known as “the long acre”, because drovers used it as pasture for cattle that they were moving from one place to another. In some parts of the US it is called a “parkway”, “park strip” or “tree lawn”, in Australia it’s a “nature strip” and in New Zealand it’s a “verge” or…

Over the centuries, wild rabbit meat has gone in and out of fashion for various reasons, but now it’s making a bit of a renaissance — and with good reason: it’s plentiful, tasty and good for you. This easy-to-prepare recipe is a nice riff on the rabbit and its favourite meal: the carrot. Indeed, the rabbit meat’s slightly gamey flavour is complemented by the vibrant fresh taste of carrots — preferably organic — that are served in three different ways: shaved, cooked and puréed. The trick is to prepare the carrots while the rabbit meat is cooking slowly — you can cheat and buy tinned puréed carrots, though it’s easy to make yourself. Simply boil or steam 100g of carrots for about 20 minutes until tender, then mash or whizz…