Innholdsfortegnelse for 20-Jul-2022 i Shooting Times & Country

Perthshire gamekeepers have helped in the capture of an eaglet. The young bird was caught on a grouse shooting estate in the Strathbraan area after keepers guided licensed climbers to the nest, where they abseiled down and removed the chick. The bird was one of a pair of chicks and it is very rare for both to survive in a brood of two. The eaglet will now be reared in captivity until it is old enough to join the South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project. Project manager Dr Cat Barlow said: “We are very grateful to the donor estate and the team who aided in the safe collection of the eagle chick. This eagle chick from Strathbraan will soon become part of a growing population in southern Scotland.” Alex Hogg,…

NEWS Digital markers are being placed on the medical records of all firearm and shotgun certificate holders in England. The marker will alert GPs that a patient has shotguns or rifles if they have a relevant medical condition, such as certain mental health or neurological problems or evidence of substance abuse. Doctors will be expected to pass this information on to the police. Firearms licensing teams will then make a decision as to whether any action is required. A BASC spokesman commented: “BASC has long supported the introduction of a digital marker on certificate holders’ medical notes. The roll-out of this software has been six years in the making. It is essential for public safety that every GP practice now downloads and uses that marker. “Promoting the uptake is for…

LETTER OF THE WEEK Do you fancy a taste of coypu pâté? I was interested to read the article regarding coypu (Coypu kick up a stink, 6 July). Living as I do in south Devon, coypu were extremely rare and may now be extinct in this area. I have never seen one and have never spoken to anyone who has claimed to have done so. Some years ago my wife and I were driving in France, in the Vendée as I recall, when we stopped for fuel. The adjoining boutique sold local foodstuffs, including jars of pâté de ragondin. Not knowing what it was but always ready to try something new, we bought some. The dictionary did not help nor could friends, despite their command of the language. Several days…

If the Game Fair is my Glastonbury, the day that combines start to roll is my Christmas. For us pigeon shooters, seeing that first stubble is as exciting as seeing that first grouse of the season coming over the heather. Before we kick off, it’s worth acknowledging that some people have differing opinions about shooting pigeons over stubbles. Some complain about shooting birds when they have young in the nest. This is perfectly valid and being an ethical Shot is essential but, in truth, pigeons breed every month of the year. So not shooting them when there’s a risk they have young means not shooting them at all. There are also those who say it’s not crop protection. No doubt, they are the same sort of people who like telling…

You never really know when oyster mushrooms will appear. Growing, as they do, from dead wood, they do not follow a period of heavy rain as do terrestrial mushrooms, and their general season is anything from May to December. I find them most often in October, but perhaps that is because I spend more time looking for mushrooms in the autumn. Whenever they appear they are, at least, easy to identify. There are several species found in Britain, only two of which are common: the oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus and the pale oyster, P pulmonarius. Also edible but less frequent are the branching oyster, P cornucopiae and the veiled oyster, P dryinus. Oyster mushrooms in general are characterised by having little or no stem, with the gills typically running down…

Vintage Times CELEBRATING OUR BEST WRITERS For the past two years, I’ve been a member of a smallish pheasant syndicate in west Wales. It’s been agreeable and not too costly, and I hope to continue for a few years to come. But the season is a short one and we get about six to eight days, invariably on Saturdays. Yet there were occasional half-days in the week when I felt like taking the gun and having a walk over some land. It was difficult to do this on the syndicate area and it contained little apart from the pheasants. As it happens, I live within eight miles of a sizeable salt marsh where wild duck run into thousands. In hard weather geese, too, come there and, as I’d never even…

NEWS The number of firearm and shotgun certificate holders in England has dropped by 8% in a single year — which BASC has blamed on failures in the licensing process. The annual Home Office summary of licences held, issued and revoked showed there were 539,212 people in England and Wales who held a firearm and/or a shotgun certificate in 2021-22. This was a decrease of almost 50,000 from the year before. BASC responded with some frustration, blaming the decline on inefficiency and delay in police firearms licensing teams. Martin Parker, BASC’s head of firearms, said: “On the ground we are hearing time and time again about individuals postponing their application because they have heard about the delays. “This restriction on new athletes is becoming damaging” “One member in the Devon…

A major project to research the effects of gamebird releasing is under way. The release of gamebirds, particularly on protected sites, has become a contentious political issue in recent years. Following a court case brought by anti-shooting group Wild Justice, Defra issued an interim licence that allowed the continued release of pheasants and partridges on protected sites. This review is intended to provide definitive evidence that will lead to the licence being kept, scrapped or changed. Defra, Natural England and the Animal and Plant Health Agency will look at the number of gamebirds released on and around protected sites in England, how far those birds spread from their release sites and the impact they have on soil, plants, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and predators. Gamekeeper Stuart Midgley said: “As long as…

Every year, millions of pounds are raised for good causes at clay shoots run all over the UK. I can’t help but think it is a missed opportunity that the shooting world doesn’t make more noise about this significant contribution. Even though they are fundraising exercises first and foremost, many of us still want to give our best. Yet, for some, getting over the fear and trepidation generated by such public performances, with scorers keeping count, is the first important hurdle. If you fall into this bracket, you must reframe the problem. First, many of these shoots are simulated game-style flushes shot over a team of three or four, which means you are able to hide in plain sight and the team score is counted, not the individual. Secondly, it’s…

Rabbiting With a near-silent ‘phut’ and a louder ‘thwack’ from Gary’s precharged S410 air rifle, the rabbit sprung into the air before landing lifeless on its side. It was a classic reaction to a perfect headshot, as the nervous system sends a spasm down the spine and the back legs kick out. I’ve shot with Gary hundreds of times and he’s one of the best all-round Shots I know. Once his crosshairs are on something, it is almost always over. This particular rabbit was sitting close to the clubhouse, so it was a little risky for the .22 LR I had slung over my shoulder, along with several rabbits. The golf course we were shooting over has been a permission of mine for some years and it’s a constant battle…

Since I am leaving shortly for several days on a famous Scottish river in pursuit of the king of fish, this seems a timely question. I was not brought up fishing for salmon. I was encouraged, as a child, to drown the occasional maggot in pursuit of roach and dace on the local river and was taken, in my teens, to fish for trout with my father on lakes and reservoirs. I didn’t come to salmon fishing until I was in my middle years and now I don’t want to stop. Continuing, however, is beset with difficulties. Most importantly, the numbers of Atlantic salmon returning to their natal rivers to spawn each season have dropped precipitously in recent years. Climate change, habitat disruption by dams and hydroelectric projects, pollution from…

GundogsDAVID’S VIEWPOINT For most labrador handlers, a successful 300-yard retrieve is something to savour. In contrast, sheepdog handlers think nothing of sending their dogs half a mile or more, as I witnessed last month at a trial organised by the East Anglian Sheepdog Society. All the dogs running were border collies, while those I was watching were open dogs and clearly knew what they had to do. What impressed me most was the distance the handlers could send their dogs in a straight line to find the sheep. The run out, I was assured, was around 1,000 yards. It was a case of the dog trusting its handler, as at such a distance it could neither scent nor see the sheep it had been sent to bring back. It was…

I had just finished my demonstration at the recent GWCT Scottish Game Fair at Scone Palace. While I was assembling the assortment of props and equipment for my next display, a couple of men leaning against the barrier caught my eye. They called me over. I expected one of the usual requests after such a performance, but what I was about to hear left me with a tear in my eye. The elder gentleman placed three bags into my hands and said that he was a keen ferreting man, and had been for years, but after a stroke, he was unable to go out. We shook hands as we chatted. He didn’t want his equipment to gather dust and could think of no one better to make use of it.…

The action body is made from a high-strength aluminium, saving 200g in weight, with added strength provided by steel inserts in the face of the gun OUR VERDICT Gun reviews at this time of year are usually written with positive thoughts of the coming game shooting season. With COVID-19 restrictions behind us, we were all hoping for a return to normality this year. Unfortunately, this is not going to be the case. Avian influenza has devastated the French game farming regions of Vendée and Loire-Atlantique. The knock-on effect on the UK shooting industry is going to be sizeable, with poor availability of imported eggs causing many shoots to scale back or cancel days. “The finish to the whole Browning range is a class above and this gun is no different”…

A heroic effort by staff and volunteers has brought all the ranges at the National Shooting Centre back into action after they were hit by a serious wildfire. The fire was first spotted in the range danger area on the evening of 4 July. Fire crews rushed to the scene but, due to lack of access, were able to do little to tackle the blaze. The fire spread overnight but the next day it was contained in an area behind Stickledown stop butt. Once the fire had been contained, volunteers rushed in to move 200 target frames to safety. The next day strong winds drove the fire on to Stickledown range floor, behind Century and Melville ranges, and along the edge of Cottesloe Heath. Firefighters and NSC staff worked tirelessly…

NEWS Sporting estates are bracing for a fresh round of attacks as the Scottish government kicks off a consultation on a new land reform law. However, so-called ‘green lairds’ may also face challenges to their approach under the legislation. Announcing the start of the consultation, Màiri McAllan MSP, Scotland’s minister for environment and land reform, made it clear that large estates and their owners were firmly in the government’s sights. “Private ownership of land — particularly at scale — has in the past conferred significant prestige, associated with, for example, hereditary titles, status and ability to influence policy and law. “While many aspects of society have become more equitable, the privilege associated with the ownership of land at scale remains, and takes new forms.” Landownership in Scotland is unusually concentrated,…

Red stag stalking We are into July and with it comes the opening of the red stag season. It’s strange, though, that this date seems to drift past with little interest when compared with the buzz surrounding 1 April and the start of the roebucks. However, I have always eagerly looked forward to stalking the first of the red stags, and for the deer manager, it makes perfect sense to start early on the cull and try to get ahead of the game. In Scotland, red deer have been off the stalking agenda while roe deer have been the focus, so it’s nice to get back out on the largest of our native species. However, there is a downside. July coincides with an explosion of biting insects, including the Scottish…

Only the very finest of handcrafted and finished guns can aspire to be described as ‘Best’. Ask discerning shooters across the globe to name those makers whose guns qualify and all will rattle off the top three houses of Purdey, Holland & Holland and Boss & Co. Pressed to extend their list, they may add Westley Richards and, perhaps, Watson Bros or William & Son. If there’s a rifle user in the room, John Rigby & Co will be cited. “And David McKay Brown, of course,” someone will say to murmurs of agreement. And though the great man himself is somewhat retired, the bench where he produced his exquisite round-action pieces is now in the guardianship of Buchan Guns, which has been creating its own lovely firearms in recent years.…

The history of keepering I wonder what the replies would be if I asked a room full of the younger end of the gamekeeping profession — or indeed anyone in the countryside these days — what they associated with the terms ‘kip’ and ‘horsehide’? The first would almost certainly be sleep; the second, perhaps thick-skinned? In fact, before the advent of synthetic materials, they were the two forms of boot leather most commonly available. Kip was the term for cowhide and was cheaper and less hard-wearing than its more superior counterpart, horsehide. North of the border, these boots were known as ‘tackety boots’; down south, hobnail boots. The difference was simply that the metal nails which adorned the soles were known as tackets in Scotland and hobs in England. I…

Across 1 Has much to say about agricultural pests (7) 6 Ammunition only goes so far in the mountains (5) 8 According to a beater from the kitchen, there’s something hairy about the otter (7) 9 Sir leads us to steak — or a cut of hare (4) 10 Even with big letters, shooting kit goes to our heads (4,4) 11 Birds are travelling to the French capital being deceitful (6) 13 One securing tents sees that the dog is a catcher of unshot game (6) 16 Sporting bird at the golf club — prepare to fire (8) 18 A retrieve that didn’t go unnoticed (4) 20 Olympic icons with night vision equipment (7) 21 A blue-blooded stag? (5) 22 In the barn, ice ruins a rifle (7) Down 2…