Innholdsfortegnelse for 20-July-2016 i Shooting Times & Country

WELCOME TO OUR bumper summer issue. I hope you enjoy the great range of sport, from Steve Rawsthorne’s Spanish ibex adventure to Paul Quagliana’s pursuit of our own fearsome predator, the pike. There is good news this week that DEFRA has rejected the Lead Ammunition Group (LAG) report calling for a ban on lead shot. Former secretary of state Liz Truss confirmed that the opponents of lead shot, led by John Swift, were willing to ignore other members of the group and present inadequate evidence in an attempt to force their own agenda. The LAG’s action reflects a growing trend for certain organisations to take a highly selective approach to narrowly focused research in order to bring their ideological objections to bear against shooting interests (see Scottish Wildlife Trusts p.9).…

Attempt to beat Lord Ripon’s 60-second feat Edward King, managing director of shotgun and firearms importer ASI, came one point short of breaking the Marquis of Ripon’s alleged record for shooting 28 pheasants in one minute, in a new open challenge at the West London Shooting School. Shooting clays, Edward (pictured far right) broke 27 with 32 shots in just 60 seconds, using three guns and two loaders. The “Ripon Challenge” will be running at West London Shooting School for the next 12 months and is open to competitors. Visit www.shootingschool.co.uk for details. To watch the video of Edward’s 60-second shoot, visit po.st/riponchallenge. Too late for spring crops, say experts Shoot managers still tempted to plant game maize and other spring-sown crops this late in the year risk them failing,…

“I felt thankful to be able to experience the same simple things in life that a doomed soldier might’ve seen” This month marked the centenary of the start of the Battle of the Somme. I was pleased it received so much media coverage. A lot of it came from the Thiepval Memorial in France, the imposing Anglo-French Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, which bears the names of 72,194 soldiers with no known grave. At 7:30am, the time the British launched their offensive, on 1 July 2016 many of us stood still to remember those brave lads who’d clambered from the trenches 100 years earlier, in what would become known as one of the most tragic, miscalculated battles in history. I was out walking my springer spaniel, Polly, along…

1 BARRELS Barrels 28in, choked half and three-quarters 2 DECORATION Profuse scroll engraving and colour casehardening 3 ACTION Break-open, boxlock ejector with top lever release 4 STOCK Straight hand stock with diamond (section) grip and English fore-end WHAT TO LOOK FOR Barrels: Unmarked, as new with really clean bores Action:Tight and crisp with no visible signs of wear Weight: 6¾lb Price: While side-by-side double-trigger guns are not especially popular, a sleeper like this could top £5,000 at auction The Blanch shotgun is that ultra-rare item, a shotgun that has lain unused for most of its existence; what is called, in the trade, a “sleeper”. In more general terms “barely shop-soiled” would be an accurate description of condition. Why is it that often…

Pike fever rises to the surface unexpectedly, like a recurring illness, and there is no telling how long the bout will last. A pike was the first large fish I ever caught when I was nine years old and it was on that day I became infected. My mother had taken me to a small outflow channel where, on a ledgered lobworm, I hooked a 5lb 10oz beauty. I got lucky, it was hooked in the lip and couldn’t cut the line with its razor teeth. A nearby fisherman netted it for me, produced a lump hammer from his car and proceeded to club it. From there it found its way to a taxidermist. All these years later, it still hangs on the wall. Slimy and streamlined The pike goes…

WHEN A HORSE APPROACHES: Put your dog on the farthest side, away from the horse. Step to the side but remain in view. Keep your dog to heel or on a short lead. As a horse passes, be aware the dog might lunge. If walkers are on other side of the track, join them to give the horse more room. If cyclists pass at speed, understand that the horse may become nervous. PROACTIVE DOG TRAINING It is worth getting your dog familiar to the following: Horses in fields. Horses rolling. Foals. Ridden horses moving slowly. Ridden horses moving fast. Horses drawing vehicles.…

Stopping pellets from travelling beyond the intended target is vital when it comes to safe and legal shooting in the garden. Wood is one of the worst materials you can use as a backstop. Even if the piece of timber you are using is tough enough to remain intact after a barrage of pellets, its fibrous nature means it can cause dangerous and unpredictable ricochets, often sending pellets back in the direction of the shooter. The best backstop to halt airgun pellets without risk of ricochet is a wall of brick, stone or concrete. On meeting with solid resistance, lead pellets are left with scant energy to bounce even a foot or two. This will keep spent pellets within the confines of your boundary, and keep you on the right…

“When you get hold of a young, plump hen pheasant, a traditional roast is the only way to go” It is still summer, the crops are yet to come off and few of us will probably be thinking of pheasants, but I have a hunch that I am not the only one in need of eating up a few remaining birds from last season that are still stashed at the back of the freezer. They will all need to be gone in a few days as I have a pig coming back from the butcher’s, and that lands me with a little issue. My good wife Caroline is patient. She eats an awful lot of game that she wouldn’t perhaps normally choose to. But by around December, I am presented…

Celebrating the origins, personalities and achievements of the conservation movement in England, 22 Ideas That Saved the English Countryside by Peter Waine and Oliver Hilliam (Frances Lincoln, £25) explores the once-radical ideas put forward by pioneering campaigners over the past couple of centuries that have saved thousands of acres of English countryisde and permanently protected millions more for future generations. It features rarely seen archive material alongside stunning landscape photography and introductions to each of the ideas by well-known individuals including Andrew Motion, Simon Jenkins, Kate Adie, Melvyn Bragg and Ray Mears. Among subjects covered are the introduction and impact of the green belt, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Britain’s anti-litter campaign and the birth of the Commons Preservation Society (now the Open Spaces Society). READER BOOK OFFER Order your…

“The LAG report did not show that the impacts of lead were significant enough to justify changing policy” Outgoing DEFRA secretary Elizabeth Truss last week announced that the Government had rejected the recommendation of the Lead Ammunition Group (LAG) report to ban the use of lead ammunition. The LAG was set up in 2010 to investigate the possible risks to wildlife and human health from lead ammunition. By June 2015, five out of 10 LAG members had resigned, citing a lack of confidence in the process and a perceived anti-lead bias from group chairman John Swift. In one of her last acts as DEFRA secretary (see p.7 ), Ms Truss sent a letter to Mr Swift stating that the report “did not show that the impacts of lead ammunition were…

LEARN National Fishing Month (NFM) begins on Friday, 22 July, lasting through to Monday, 29 August. You can take part in one of the 250 events being held in locations across the UK, including one of NFM’s showcase sessions at the Sportfish Game Fishing Centre at Theale in Reading on Friday. With a customised day full of hands-on angling opportunities, the event focus is on youngsters and newcomers, with tutored fishing on the lake, one-to-one advice from some of the biggest names in the sport, and demonstrations throughout the day that will illustrate just how easy it is to get started. For more information, visit www.nationalfishingmonth.com. EAT You might not think to pair cherries with woodpigeon and gingerbread, but trust us, try out our recipe and you won’t regret it.…

A new report by the Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) has come under heavy criticism from other rural organisations for being unscientific and hypocritical. The paper Living Landscapes in the Scottish Uplands recommends a number of changes that the SWT believes are required to reverse habitat and wildlife population declines in upland areas. These include the licensing of driven upland grouse moor management and transition to walked-up shooting and the introduction of mandatory management and monitoring of wild deer to maintain sustainable population levels. However, Scottish Countryside Alliance director Jamie Stewart said that the report “displays a lack of understanding of how the uplands work”. He explained: “The Scottish Wildlife Trust’s belief that the transition to ‘walked-up’ grouse shooting will be of benefit to the Scottish uplands is both unscientific and…

BASC will introduce a record number of young people to shooting and conservation at the Essex International Jamboree later this month. The coaching line will run for six days from Saturday, 30 July and aims to give 7,200 participants the chance to experience clayshooting for the first time. A charity clay shoot (participants pictured ) and auction at Royal Berkshire Shooting School has raised £55,000 for the Princess Alexandra Hospital breast unit in Harlow, Essex. It will go towards funding equipment, introducing new initiatives and supporting research into breast cancer. Importers have recently been forced to recall a quantity of Waidwerk blank-firing revolvers after British police deemed them illegal. BASC has warned its members that they risk a prison sentence by bringing such items into the country as the revolvers…

IT’S NOT ALL BAD With so much doom and gloom at the moment regarding Brexit and what it holds for our future (News, 6 and 13 July; Have your say, 13 July), I must reflect on two positive experiences. The first was concerning my shotgun certificate renewal. Having taken advice, I got mine in early, eight weeks before it was due, expecting the worst. Imagine my surprise when it arrived in the post a full four weeks before the old one’s expiry date. I cannot praise the Wiltshire firearms licensing department enough; every dealing with it has been hassle-free. The second experience was with the purchase of a new gun. I went to my local gunshop as clay pigeon shooting is something I haven’t really done seriously. Tony Manvell of…

I’m not quite sure what happened to “flaming June” and the predicted long hot summer, but I am hoping the weather improves. The weather last month made things extremely difficult. We had a warm, dry May and were hoping for an equally settled spell in June. Typically, it began to rain just as we were starting to see a few wild broods and it didn’t stop for three weeks. I’m sure a few of them have survived but how many we won’t really know until the harvest is off. The early broods of pheasants may have been strong enough to withstand the rain and the cold, but I fear most of those hatched during the bad weather will have perished. For our French partridges the outlook is a little worse.…

ROUCHETTE EVOLUTION BOOTS French outdoor footwear manufacturer Rouchette has partnered with Realtree to produce the Evolution boots in Realtree Xtra camo. Developed with Rouchette’s ISOLA neoprene lining and Confort Tech technology, the boots provide maximum insulation and cushioning for outdoorsmen who crave comfort, and are durable and waterproof for superior protection. Realtree Xtra camo combined with dark brown rubber provides outdoorsmen with unbeatable concealment within a range of environments. • www.rouchette.com • Price: £159.95 ORVIS FAIRBANKS SHIRT From its soft brushed surface to its faux suede details beneath the collar and around the buttonholes and locker loop, the Fairbanks herringbone shirt has all the qualities of a winter classic. A subtle windowpane pattern adds just the right amount of colour to this herringbone long-sleeved shirt. Spread collar, two inverted pleated…

The red-eyed dove, Streptopelia semitorquata, is a pigeon indigenous to Africa south of the Sahara. It is around 12in in length, stocky, and has a pale brown back, wings and tail with blackish flight feathers. The head and underparts are dark pink to pale grey around the face. A black patch edged with white appears on the back of the neck. Its name comes from a bare patch of skin around the eyes, which is red. The bird’s main diet is seeds, grains and other vegetation. The breeding season is all year round, though there is a clear spring-summer peak in some areas. Females lay two eggs, which are incubated by both parents for between 14 and 17 days before hatching. The chicks stay in the nest a further 15…

With reeds growing up to 8ft high, as well as branches and lily pads, tough gear and accurate casting are essential. The gear I use is perhaps a bit too heavy but it means I can clamp down on a fish and keep it out of a snag. I use fluorocarbon leaders of 20lb breaking strain instead of the 30lb leaders I had been using. The danger is that if you make the leader too strong you may have difficulty snapping it if you get snagged and may damage your expensive fly line in the process. For the trace I use 30lb Rio pike wire, it’s not cheap but it is supple enough to knot if I tie the knot slowly to prevent curling. I don’t use a swivel any…

It was a still, bright October evening at Llanrhidian in West Wales, and Tom and I had decided to try for a shot at evening flight. Being in the outer reaches of the Bristol Channel, this is a coast of big tides, and at 10m in Swansea tonight’s tide was predicted to be one of the biggest of the year, with high water at bang on flight time. With this much water the marsh would go right under, so we knew we had to be very careful where we went. If we predicted the tide height wrongly and got stranded, there would be no way out except by swimming. I am proud to say that we got it just right, and the water reached a little over our knees as…

Practice is always more interesting with a friend, as an element of competitiveness adds to the enjoyment, but safety should never be compromised by fun. With more than one shooter on the range, it is essential to establish exactly who will be shooting when. Keep your firing points close together, preferably from the same bench, so communication is as clear as possible. If one of you needs to walk downrange to check or adjust the targets make sure it is clear and understood by your companion, and stay put until they have acknowledged you. Before anyone leaves their position, ensure that all guns are unloaded and uncocked, pointing in a safe direction, with magazines removed and safety catches set. Guns should not be reloaded until you are back safely in…

FOR MOST OF US, the shooting season is still months away. If, however, you are fortunate enough to work your dogs on the grouse moors, there’s just three weeks or so to go before the start, assuming that grouse stocks are robust enough for shooting to begin on 12 August. However, since the introduction of medicated grit, grouse populations no longer rise and fall in cycles as they once did, so the odds are high that most moors will be shooting soon. I’ve always lived a long way from the nearest grouse moor, so my excursions to the moors have always been something of a treat. I’ve never been grouse-shooting in Wales or Ireland, but I’ve had some memorable experiences in both northern England and Scotland. Quickly adding up the…

BILL HARRIMAN BASC’s head of firearms and global authority on guns MAT MANNING Airgunner and journalist from the West Country BRUCE POTTS Shooting Times rifl e 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, Pinehurst…

Most mute swans are flightless in July, with cygnets not fully grown and adults moulting their main wing feathers. With birds unable to fly away, this is the season for round-ups, whether these involve the royal ritual of swan upping on the Thames (18 to 22 July this year) or are conducted by qualified bird ringers in canoes in other parts of the country. Mute swans are long-lived birds with the oldest being a bird that was caught several times at the Abbotsbury swannery in Dorset – it was 29 years, one month and 11 days old. Surprisingly, for such a well-studied and nonmigratory species, this is only one year longer than the longevity records for both whooper and Bewick’s swans, which respectively fly to and from Iceland and Russia…

In Victorian times, when butterfly collecting was a popular pursuit, July was the month when the greatest prize of all was on offer: the purple emperor. The largest and most elusive of British butterflies, and arguably the most handsome, it was a species that everyone wanted in their cabinet. Catching an emperor was a challenge, for this is a butterfly that favours oak woodland, is scarce and localised, and flies high in the canopy, rarely venturing to the ground. However, the collectors were well aware that handsome though the emperor was, it was a butterfly of dubious taste, and could be tempted to ground level by such baits as rabbit guts or pigs’ dung. Many emperors were lured with range of the net by such tactics. This butterfly was a…

“It makes no odds to the animal itself whether it has been killed for food or for sport” At this time of year, gamekeepers are busy with their release pens. But just how ethical is it to rear and release gamebirds for shooting? At least as ethical, some might say, as rearing any form of livestock to be eaten. And before anybody says, “Ah, but gamebirds are shot for sport, not food”, let me point out that after being shot, gamebirds are eaten. It makes no odds to the animal itself whether it has been killed for food or sport. A pheasant makes no distinction between whether it has been flushed by a beater or a rambler. Yet a pheasant has a more natural life than a battery farmed chicken.…

“Food security is not a party-political issue. MPs from all sides should be taking the farming sector very seriously – farmers’ ability to feed the nation, and play a part in feeding the world, depends on it.” National Farmers’ Union president Meurig Raymond stresses the importance of agriculture being part of the political conversation following Brexit. EIGHT Tracking devices have been fitted to eight English cuckoos by researchers at the British Trust for Ornithology to record their location as they migrate to and from Africa. It is hoped that these satellite tags will help shed light on the challenges the birds face during their journey.…

1-3 AUGUST LAPORTE CHALLENGE TROPHY 100 CLAY SHOOT Royal Berkshire Shooting School, Pangbourne, Berkshire Tel 01491 672900 5 AUGUST HOLT’S AUCTIONEERS ANNUAL CLAY DAY Sandringham estate, Norfolk Tel 01485 542822 5-7 AUGUST THE 42ND ANNUAL GLOUCESTERSHIRE VINTAGE & COUNTRY EXTRAVAGANZA South Cerney Airfield, Cirencester, Gloucestershire Tel 01453 890891 13-14 AUGUST THE LOWTHER SHOW Lowther estate, Penrith, Cumbria Tel 01889 563232 26 AUGUST THE CLAY SHOOTING DTL CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP Bywell Shooting Ground, Felton, Northumberland Tel 01670 787827 27-28 AUGUST IRISH GAME & COUNTRY FAIR Birr Castle, Co. Offaly Tel 00353 05791 21818…

A rare presentation silver-mounted walking cane made from rhinoceros horn that was shot by the famous British explorer Frederick Courteney Selous in Zimbabwe in 1872 sold for £15,000 at the Holt’s auction on 30 June. Selous was arguably the most famous explorer, big-game hunter and conservationist of the late 1800s, famous for his exploits in south-east Africa. He was also the real-life inspiration for the fictional adventurer Allan Quatermain. Shooting TimesEditor Joe Dimbleby, who met Selous’ great- great-nephew Peter Selous-Jones at the auction preview, commented: “Itwas a pleasure to meet Peter. He has done much to safeguard the archive of the legendary hunter and it’s great that he has himself taken an interest in shooting.” Joe continued:“Though, quite rightly, our approach to big-game hunting has changed since the 19th century,…

Being a good game Shot is about being consistent on all forms of quarry, in different weather conditions, on different topography and at different times of the season. Alan Rose, the renowned shooting instructor at the West London Shooting School, always drummed into me that style and technique kill the bird. The top sportsmen in this country are successful because they have honed their ability by ensuring their technique is correct. This is what enables their hand-eye co-ordination to perform. If your technique is correct and rock-solid, then you can focus completely on what you are shooting at and nothing else need get in the way. It takes time to perfect, though, and once mastered it also takes time for it to feel completely natural, but it is what will…

In 1925, the ibex was down to around 25 animals. King Alfonso XIII and the owner of the estate started a conservation programme and now there are about 8,000 of them, which qualifies as a real hunting and conservation success. Were it not for the hunting maintaining the quality of the herd and bringing in some revenue, the Gredos ibex would almost certainly have become extinct. In 2000, the last known Pyrenean ibex — a subspecies of the Iberian version — was found dead. Scientists had preserved skin samples of it and used its DNA to produce a female clone.…

A real understanding of the natural world requires experience, patience and, above all, observation. No amount of book learning or researching the Internet can replace watching wildlife in close-up and at first hand. Most readers of Shooting Times will appreciate that it is the hunter who often has a better understanding of wildlife than most people. His knowledge is honed through regular contact and interaction with the creatures he pursues — as it must be if he is to achieve success. And as every true hunter knows, that contact and interaction brings with it a deep respect and indeed a love for wild creatures and their habitats. It is thanks to hunting that I have loved butterflies from my boyhood. My grandfather introduced my father to butterfly collecting, and my…

In recent weeks the weather has been both warm and wet. I keep a rain gauge in my garden: in the first six months of this year, I recorded over 400mm, more than twice as much as in the same period in 2015. Having so much rain has been frustrating, as my favourite summer walks have been unseasonably muddy, and it has caused the grass in my field to grow and grow. Warm and wet weather also provides ideal conditions for ticks to multiply, but I’m delighted to say that I haven’t found a single tick on my spaniels so far this year. I am sure this is entirely due to switching their tick protection from the spot-on method I used for years to the latest technology. I now give…