Innholdsfortegnelse for 10-Apr-2019 i Shooting Times & Country

Last week, I decided it was time for a holiday so I caught a train to Dumfriesshire, drove to a ferry that took me to the Isle of Luing, and then got a lift to a small Hebridean island from a local farmer. Jhings didn’t go quite as planned. I forgot the sherry, it was colder than I had anticipated, and I mistakenly took a sleeping bag with me that belonged to my brother when he was a child. Suffocation, sobriety and darkness aside, I didn’t have a completely terrible time. Most days, I wandered up to a hill loch and cast a fly in the hope of catching something for supper. Despite it being early in the season, the trout were eager to feed and threw themselves at my…

11 APRIL PROPERTY GUN & PUNT CLUB INTER-REGION SHOOT E.J. Churchill, Buckinghamshire chris@warman properties.com 26 APRIL RED SQUIRREL CONFERENCE University of Exeter, Devon www.redsquirrel conference.co.uk 28 APRIL GAMEKEEPERS’ WELFARE TRUST CHARITY CLAY SHOOT Selkirk, Scottish Borders braidwood@bisley shooting.co.uk 11-12 MAY NORTHERN SHOOTING SHOW Yorkshire Event Centre, Harrogate www.northernshooting show.co.uk/ 19-23 JUNE JACK PYKE ENGLISH OPEN Sporting Targets, Bedfordshire Tel 01234 708893…

BSSC stalwart retires David Penn has retired from the British Shooting Sports Council (BSSC) where his understanding of firearms technology and legislation helped shooting sports counter ever-increasing controls over firearms ownership. A former chairman of the Government’s Firearms Consultative Committee, Mr Penn’s opinion on firearms matters has been respected by politicians, civil servants and the police. Shooting Timescontributor Graham Downing succeeds him in the role and said: “I will continue to follow the course charted by David and ensure all shooting bodies are speaking with one voice in the political arena.” “Shotgun Chef” on trial in September William Alldis, known as “the Shotgun Chef” has denied a firearms charge in court after being reported for shooting deer in a public park. He appeared before Snaresbrook Crown Court on 20 March…

Richard Negus would appear to suggest that coastal flightponds are the cause of a perceived lack of ducks on the foreshore (Sporting or greedy?, 6 March). I have wildfowled on the Alde and adjacent Ore since 1978, and for the past 25 years I have managed a coastal flightpond adjacent to the Alde. There are 10 flightponds within a gunshot or three of the estuary complex, one of which is managed by the local wildfowling club. My pond and one other differ slightly in that they are “morning” ponds rather than the usual evening pond. They have existed for more than 60 and 200 years respectively. “The newest wetland reserve, which is upstream from Snape Maltings, is often black with ducks” Contrary to Richard’s opinion, a well-managed pond can be…

IMPROVING STOCK, NOT FASHION OR FAD My hobs are starting to break down and come into season. The jills will soon follow suit as this is a vital time in my rabbiting year. However important it may be, it is still a frustrating time as I still have some ferreting to do. It is also a time where I must be responsible and think carefully about what I am going to do with my charges. It would be so easy for me to breed the bottom out of my stock to make a quick profit, but my moral compass has never allowed me to be swayed. I am a bit old-school in my ethos on breeding. I was always taught that the whole purpose behind the breeding of any animal…

THE JOKER IN THE spaniel pack. No, not my words, but those of an Irish water spaniel owner and enthusiast, talking about the foibles and idiosyncrasies of his favourite breed. The Irish water spaniel, he assured me, could lay claim to being the only HPR native to these islands. He explained that his spaniels were not only keen hunters, but invariably pointed before they flushed. No, they didn’t hold the point like a setter, but he felt sure that they could be trained to do so. Retrieving? No problem, whether it was from land or water. The Irish water spaniel has always been a rarity in the shooting field, but it is a dog with undoubted talent. Last month this distinctive spaniel gained some rare publicity when a dog called…

Coaxing kingfishers to a river RIVERKEEPING Q How can we encourage kingfishers to populate the stretch of river that runs through our village? A Kingfishers are present in all parts of the UK. They are drawn to water that has a good head of small fish, along with plenty of perches a short distance above the water’s surface. They also like a steep bank in which they can safely build a nest. To encourage them, provide populations of minnows and fish fry with refuges from aquatic and avian predators by encouraging reed and weed growth. Also manage bankside trees with a view to providing a few perches from which a kingfisher can fish. Kingfishers are highly territorial, so the more productive the stretch of river, the shorter the stretch required…

Lesser spotted woodpeckers have never been common, breeding only in England and Wales, but in the past 50 years there has been a 40 per cent drop in the species’ range and there has been a reduction in numbers in the parts of the country where they can still be found. It is quite likely that many of us will see or hear a starling-sized great spotted woodpecker on any day of the week, but sparrow-sized lesser spotted woodpeckers are secretive woodland specialists that can only peck out a living if there is soft and decaying timber in which to find insect larvae. They dig out their own nests in dead trunks or limbs of species, such as alder willow and birch, often choosing woodland edges near water. We know…

A recent ruling by the EU’s top court should throw a spotlight on the double standards of certain animal welfare charities and their priorities. In February, the court ruled that the EU organic food logo cannot be used for meat produced from domestic livestock that have been slaughtered without having been stunned beforehand. The case reached the court after a challenge brought by a French animal welfare organisation in 2012. The key point is that animal welfare authorities maintain that slaughter without pre-stunning causes unacceptable suffering. This is considered incompatible with the principles of the organic movement. European law generally requires all domestic livestock to be pre-stunned but allows certain exemptions to be granted on religious grounds. This means that kosher and halal slaughter without pre-stunning is legal in many…

CONSERVATION Now that the weather is improving, why not get together with your wildfowling club and spend a day clearing up debris that washes up on the shoreline? At Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve a team of 25 wildfowlers cleared up everything from plastic toy cars to fridges to dumped oil drums. Gareth Dockerty, BASC North regional officer, said: “The annual event provides a great opportunity for wildfowlers to catch up after the season and help to give something back.” Andrew Craggs, senior reserve manager at Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve, said: “Litter is an ongoing battle for our staff and volunteers, so days like this are a great help.” You could finish off the day with venison on the BBQ. WIN River conservationists caring for the freshwater environment have been invited…

1 Croots Byland loaders bag RRP £309 www.crootsengland.co.uk Not only does this cartridge bag look great but it is also very functional. It has capacity for 150 cartridges, with an extra 15 loops on the front of the bag giving you maximum efficiency as well as space. It is made from a hard-wearing byland leather, with a full suede inner lining. 2 Swazi Margos pants RRP £78 www.swazi.co.nz Made specifically for women, these pants are ideal for outdoor fieldsports and activities. Reinforced at the knee and backside, they are available in sizes 8-22 and will keep you warm and dry whatever the weather. 3 Jack Pyke hide seat bucket RRP £34.95 www.jackpykeshop.co.uk Sit comfortably for hours on this sturdy plastic bucket with a 360° spinning cushion. The…

Wild boar are fast becoming a fact of life in Britain. Alongside the famous pigs in the Forest of Dean, a number of smaller and less celebrated colonies are slowly expanding across Scotland and England, and the odds are that many of these boar are here to stay. Having sampled the delights of driven wild boar in Croatia a few years ago, this gets my nerves tingling with excitement. My main memory of Croatia was its intense, weighty silence. The Guns were lined out in the deep thickness of a forgotten forest near the border with Serbia. I stood alone between a carpet of fallen leaves and a ceiling of bare twigs. Our host was a huge, bearish man who had clapped us on the back and demanded that we…

Rabbit meat is deliciously tender with an incredible flavour when cooked properly. Simply bunging it in the slow cooker for a stew or curry is selling it short. In recent years, the popularity of rabbit meat has dwindled and people simply do not realise how versatile it is. There are so many dishes you can use it in, from sausages and burgers to kebabs and salads. Some game chefs even shred the meat and use it as a pizza topping. The skinning and preparation is not too arduous once you know how to do it and there are plenty of videos and tutorials online to help you. One of the best videos is by my good friend and fellow Shooting Times contributor Simon Whitehead. Visit po.st/skinrabbit to check it out.…

I’ve never claimed to be an expert on anything, least of all gundogs, but two decades of writing this column has given me a certain depth of knowledge on gundog subjects. However, I’m often asked questions I can’t answer, as I was the other day. The question was a simple one: “Why are 210.5 whistles recommended for spaniels, but 211.5 for Labradors and retrievers?” The number refers to the pitch of the whistle, and for some reason a 210.5 is always referred to as a two-ten-and-a-half, and a 211.5 as two-eleven-and-a-half. As far as I am aware, there is no difference in the hearing of a Labrador or a spaniel, or for that matter a poodle or a pointer. All dogs, regardless of breed, hear a frequency range of 40Hz…

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 NGO chairman, Shropshire gamekeeper and keen wildfowler GRAHAM DOWNING Shooting consultant and sporting author 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 JEREMY HUNT Runs Fenway Labradors and a professional gundog trainer TIM MADDAMS Former head chef at River Cottage and runs a shoot in Devon SIMON WHITEHEAD Author, professional ferreter and rabbit controller IAIN WATSON Keen stalker and…

The unseasonal weather is not good news for most beekeepers, especially if you are at altitude — 1,200ft in my case, so at least a month behind most bee people in the country. What the heatwave did was kick-start the colonies, but with little natural food up here to date it is essential they get some. Candy, a solid block of sugar and additives, is now a popular choice for many. This is placed over a hole in the top board inside the hive and the bees eat it as they wish. I prefer to offer a sugar solution, which is easy for the bees to take down into the combs for later use, fed via the same route. It’s 50:50 sugar and water and tops them up nicely until…

The British Game Alliance (BGA), the official marketing board for the UK game industry, visited Hong Kong last week to secure new deals in exports for British game. According to HMRC, the value of game exported to Hong Kong was worth £17,232 in 2009, rising to £172,995 in 2018. China currently consumes 28 per cent of the world’s meat, twice as much as the US. Consumption has been triggered by rising incomes, with the Chinese eating seven times more meat than 35 years ago. Game dealer Nick James, director of Willo Game, which exports to the Far East, told Shooting Times: “You could say that there are opportunities here as the aspiring middle class in certain countries looks towards European goods and lifestyle — and what could be better than…

What a refreshing change to see an article written by someone who really understands shotgun ballistics (Making a killing, 20 March). A shotgun is an inefficient tool for killing except at relatively close range. As Mike Swan says, it is not an exact business and you are throwing a random scatter of shot at a moving target with which there is of course an element of luck — unlike a rifle, which is very much a precision instrument. Our estimation of range is also a valid point. It is hard enough to judge range correctly at ground level when you have a point of reference, let alone trying to judge the distance of a bird in the sky with nothing to measure it against. With the trend towards trying to…

Something about foraging tunes you into the moment, brings you into the now. Searching for the right herb, plant, fungus, fruit or nut is not always easy but right now it is and will continue to be so for a few weeks yet. It is highly likely that you have seen or at least heard of wild garlic but its appearance is such a pivotal moment in the food year. It fills the hunger gap between the garden vegetable seasons so well, and heralds the growth of so many other wayside herbs and plants that it deserves an episode all of its own in this series. Wild garlic is — perhaps after nettle — the first plant we forage as adults. Pretty much everyone who grew up in sight of…

In mid-March I battled floods and gale-force winds to attend a fundraising dinner in the Trough of Bowland. Not unsurprisingly, so had 200 other people — no last-minute cancellations because of the weather for this lot. The people of Lancashire are made of sterner stuff. The dinner was organised by BASC North, at the head of which is the inimitable Duncan Thomas. He and his team had every base covered: a great location, good food, a decent bar and the key ingredient for a top night — a couple of hundred shooting/fishing/country sports enthusiasts. And all of them intent on having a good time. The highlight of the night for many was the auction of promises. There were some excellent lots, all of which sold easily. The monies raised from…

Latin name: Polyporus squamosus Common name: Dryad’s saddle Other names: Pheasant’s back, scaly polypore. How to spot it and where to find it: This attractive fungus will be pushing its way to the surface in the next few weeks — but you’ll have to be quick, because they are rapidly devoured by insects and in warm weather they can decay from splendour to almost nothing in a matter of days. They grow in overlapping clusters on broadleaved trees but aren’t too fussy, with sycamore, ash, beech, poplar and walnut all commonly attacked. The fruiting bodies are circular or fan-shaped, creamy white to ochre in colour with concentric circles of darker scales. Interesting facts: “Squamosus” means scaly and “polyporus” means “having many pores” and the fungus does indeed have tubes terminating…

Those who know me, or have read my Country Diary entries over the years, will be aware that I have long had an interest in taxidermy. This is both from a practical do-it-yourself point of view to the background and history of the subject, interesting collections countrywide to books and literature dealing with the craft. It is, however, a good many years since I last skinned and mounted a bird. But through many years of practice and a study of all that literature, I did at least acquire rather more than the basic rudiments. I also built up a modest library of largely 19th-century works devoted to every aspect of taxidermy, published at a time when the vogue for natural history, in all its forms, was at its height. Unsurprisingly,…