Innholdsfortegnelse for 03-Feb-2021 i Shooting Times & Country

A couple of months ago, for a chapter I’m working on about the battle to save the grey partridge, I went to see a retired keeper in Norfolk, who had been at the helm of one of the country’s finest partridge shoots for 30 years. “Of course,” he said as we sat out in his garden, “we only shot the greys about one year in five.” The number shocked me. Even with a very good team and an owner who was willing to pull out all the stops, they only had sufficient birds to shoot four times, in total, over a decade. “That’s just the way it is,” he added. “If you shoot your wild stock when you don’t have the numbers you’ll do damage in the long run.” Over…

Dr Phil Hoskin, the indefatigable master of Sedbergh School’s Cressbrook House, called me this week with a rather humbling request. He asked if I would be willing to create a short film for his pupils that, he hoped, would inspire them for the term ahead. His youngsters, like all throughout the land, are enduring home schooling and online learning, or are rattling around in near-empty classrooms as the children of keyworkers. This COVID-19 consequence has created a challenge for parents but, for children, the world has been turned upside down. I agreed to Dr Phil’s request gladly and made a 90-second clip of my colleagues and I planting trees at Flea Barn in a sleet shower. I made an analogy for the children, saying that our tree planting was akin…

Our pigeon shooting expert Tom Payne offers the following tips: Make sure you go out on the right evening. You want 15mph winds at least, if you want to make a success of it, and snow can be brilliant because you disappear in the white. Cold is particularly good for roosting firs. Make sure you stand with the wind blowing from behind you because the birds will fly into the wind leading to nice incoming targets. It is important to have a good backdrop so the birds can’t see you. A mask, though, can mess up gun mount. You have to try to find a good window, rather than shooting through the trees — for which No 5 shot is best. Lofting poles can work really well with a single…

For some time, my son Charlie has been applying gentle pressure for me to let him join me on the foreshore. I feared he would find it all cold, static and, sadly all too often, blank. It is my own fault; I have waxed lyrically and too convincingly about the positives — the dramatic dawns witnessed in blissful isolation, of the thrill of towering geese and lightning teal landing on secret splashes. I had made it all sound so enticing that, despite him having wholeheartedly enjoyed beating, trapping, stalking, pigeon decoying and numerous angling jaunts, he believed only wildfowling would satiate his hunter’s appetite. Three weeks of Christmas holiday were almost at an end. The boy had borne 2020’s spartan COVID-19-era Yuletide with stoicism. As a reward, we agreed that…

Pigeon breast is a favourite of mine and I am making an effort to get more of Asia into my kitchen. Accordingly, I’ve been loosely adapting many classic dishes from China, Japan, Thailand and Malaysia into quick and simple suppers. They tick the ‘Asian and tasty’ box but admittedly I don’t know whether chefs who are actually from those countries would recognise my efforts. I like to think, though, they might quite like my take on things. Pigeon is absolutely superb but you have to get it right and the definition of ‘right’ changes with the pigeon, the dish and the season. Old pigeon will be a little tougher, while younger ones will be sweeter. The very best pigeon are those that have been shot by someone who knows what…

Whenever you write or say something for publication, you should be aware that it may be taken down and given in evidence against you. At one end of the scale is the way antis may surgically extract part of a comment so that they can use it out of context. Fortunately, that doesn’t seem to have happened to me — yet. At the other end is the prospect of being hoist by your own petard as some sharp-eyed reader spots you not practising what you preach. I usually seem to dodge this bullet, too, though more by luck than anything else. Sometimes, my stated predictions come true, though not always in the manner intended. I am reminded of a T-shirt my son wears: “I could be wrong — but it’s…

Inspect water lines for frost and ice damage. Water lines supplying drinkers, outside taps and hoses are all prime candidates for breaking in the cold. As soon as they thaw out, check them for leaks and bulges. It may be possible to cut out broken sections and replace them with proprietary connectors. Take advantage of the below the high-water mark season. If you are fortunate enough to live near an area of foreshore, you can continue to go wildfowling until 20 February. The shooting is likely to be challenging, but with record numbers of geese about it could also be rewarding.…

While reading through old articles I stumbled across Matt Cross’s piece regarding the end of the lease to grouse shooting on Ilkley Moor (It’s playing with fire, 16 May 2020). Matt spoke about the likely decline in wildlife on the moors if Bradford Council would be unable to manage it properly. The article resonated strongly with me because the estate where my father had been a gamekeeper for more than 40 years was sold to a woodland trust, which banned shooting on the estate. Its stated goal was to plant trees for “public enjoyment, heritage enrichment, and nature conservation”. I would argue that the only success of their efforts thus far was physical — the farmland that used to surround the woods is now covered in newly planted trees. As…

I was intrigued when I read in Shooting Times that Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) — now NatureScot — had given a licence for the release of 150 of the top-of-the-range raptor, the gyrfalcon (Letters, 23 December). I decided I would do some more research. There was more to it than merely a licence to release these birds; they were recaptured a short time later as part of a falconry training system. This is supposed to make the birds better hunters because they have had to look after themselves for a period of time. I won’t go into the rights or wrongs of this — either from the falconers’ perspective or from SNH’s — suffice to say Mark Avery and Co have all had their say on the matter. The gyrfalcon…

PARTNER IN ARMS OR AN ENCUMBRANCE? While I was training my puppies, a friend came to look them over and he recalled the time we were both told that if you’re serious about ferreting you should leave your dogs at home. It was thought they can hinder your progression more than helping it, with numerous digs and long waits for the ferrets to appear. I laughed then and I do the same today when I hear that saying. I know everyone is different, but to believe such a sweeping statement they must have had some really bad experiences with dogs. I believe the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. Apart from the companionship they give us, it is their ability to mark, follow the action and become another set of eyes…

BILL HARRIMAN BASC’s head of firearms and global authority on guns MAT MANNING Airgunner and journalist from the West Country DIGGORY HADOKE Vintage gun expert, firearms dealer, author and journalist BRUCE POTTS Shooting Timesrifle 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 TONY BUCKWELL Veterinary surgeon with a special interest in gundogs TOM PAYNE Professional shooting instructor and avid pigeon shooter ELLENA SWIFT Award-winning gundog trainer and canine behaviour specialist 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 senior CIC international trophy judge…

Endangered hen harriers have been found hunting or nesting on half of the grouse moors in England; however, a legal challenge places the bird’s future in doubt. The hen harrier is one of the UK’s most critically endangered birds of prey and has been a long-running source of conflict between moorland managers and activists. An action plan, which includes removing chicks from areas where harrier numbers are particularly high and rearing them in captivity, has helped the bird thrive. Sixty chicks fledged from 19 nests across northern England in summer 2020. Twelve of these nests were on land managed for grouse shooting, fledging 40 chicks. Now, of more than 100 moorland managers surveyed, in excess of half reported the birds on their land. Mark Cunliffe-Lister, chairman of the Moorland Association,…

Defra accepts role of heather burning Defra has backed heather burning as a tool to manage vegetation and promote biodiversity. In response to a question in the House of Commons earlier this month, Rebecca Pow, under-secretary of state for rural affairs, commented: “We do recognise that there will sometimes be circumstances where vegetation management is necessary and where burning may be the only practicable technique available. We will consider the views of landowners, managers and other stakeholders when assessing the scope of any future restrictions,” she added. Venison bolognese for those in need Country Food Trust CEO Tim Woodward has thanked Shooting Timesreaders for their support after the trust distributed 1.75million meals. “A huge thank you to all the amazing people who supported our annual winter appeal. We raised over…

It is with great sadness that I am writing to you about the death of my father, Brian Male, on 18 January aged 78. He was well known in the shooting, hunting and fishing community. Your magazine was very important to him and over the years he must have bought hundreds of them. Brian started shooting when he was around 16 years old. In his time he was a gamekeeper, terrierman for the Chiddingfold, Leconfield and Cowdray Hunt, won the award for National Jack Russell of Great Britain, was regional chairman for National Jack Russell of Great Britain Club, a renowned breeder of Jack Russell terriers, and a national and international judge of them. He loved game shooting, wildfowling, hunting, fly-fishing, labradors and, in his later years, wildlife photography. The…

The latest COVID-19 lockdown has brought the season to an abrupt end and all the hours spent rearing, releasing and holding the game have been in vain. We were lucky that we managed to get as many dates in as possible before lockdown came into force, which meant our shooting season was reduced by five days. We only shoot 12 days here, so we have lost a large proportion of revenue, though nothing in comparison with commercial shoots. As I mentioned in a previous article, this season has coincided with a record year for being able to hold pheasants on this estate, and other keepers I have spoken to have been saying the same. My usual regime of spinning every other day, along with having hoppers present, has been cut…

Researching German gundogs reminded me how many of our familiar breeds originated in Germany. Perhaps the best known is the German shepherd, a breed used by police forces around the world and still popular as a pet in the UK, consistently ranking as one of our favourite breeds. Sadly, GSDs have suffered at the hands of the showing fraternity, who favour these dogs with sloping backs. No dog should have a sloping back – it’s not natural. Nearly as many dachshunds are registered in the UK each year as all the German pointers put together. Originally a dog bred to go to ground after badgers — dachs is German for badger — the dachshund still has its sporting cousin, the teckel, a wirehaired full-sized dachshund. This is one of the…

The ATA SP 20 doesn’t shoot like a Beretta, but it also doesn’t shoot like a budget gun and that is the whole point. Dress it up any way you like, but new budget over-and-unders, while they are good value, reliable and decent for beginner shooters, are never great to shoot. However, the SP 20 is a country mile ahead of its competitors when it comes to shooting. It cocks conventionally through hinging the gun open rather than a finger-versus-metal battle with the top-lever, and the trigger is crisp; though it could be crisper, most would never notice. The ejectors are timed superbly and operate without fault even when the gun is hot. The safety catch is precise, as is the barrel selector. The gun is simply nice to have…

YOUNG’S WOOL FAT JELLY Most shooters these days are content to run a cleaning rod down the bore, squirt in oil and wipe it out. But cleaning used to be taken a lot more seriously. One product was Young’s Wool Fat Jelly. Instructions stated that “if the wool fat jelly is to be used as a combined cleaner and rust preventer, it must be well squeezed into the steel on tight flannelette patches so as to drive it well into the pores. The barrel must be scoured with an aqueous solution applied on a phosphor bronze wire brush, before drying out and greasing”. Thomas Bland sold a large pot for three shillings in the 1950s.…

Latin name: Salix viminalis Common name: Common osier Other names: Augers, basket willow, common withy, hemp willow, velvet osier How to spot it and where to find it: A far cry from the elegant weeping willow, the common osier is a deciduous broadleaf shrub, often seen near water. It has long, slender leaves that open after catkins in the spring. Its bark is greyish-brown with vertical cracks, while the twigs are smooth and yellow-green. In winter you can identify the osier by the green, sparsely hairy, narrow buds that are pressed close to the twig. Interesting facts: Common osier is one of the most vigorous shrubs, growing 1.5m per year. Strong, neat and bendy, osier willow is the best for basket weaving — hence osier beds and the other common…

STRIPED HYENA Striped hyenas are found from North and East Africa to India and Tibet, occurring as close to mainland Europe as Turkey and the Caucasus. They are strictly nocturnal and highly secretive. Unlike their more familiar cousin, the spotted hyena, they are generally solitary, though they may den in small family groups, sometimes made up of a single female and two or three adult males. Like all hyenas, they are scavengers, consuming carrion and all sorts of refuse. They supplement their diet with fruit, insects and reptiles, plus small mammals such as hares and rodents. Numbers are generally in decline, with the species critically endangered in Turkey. No one knows how many remain in the wild, but the species is listed as near-threatened globally.…