By Johnny Woodlock
A good day out! Dan takes the strain
M
ore and more these days we see personal agendas on show with no regards to heritage or country traditions and ways. Some people in the media are happy to try to raise their profiles by berating fieldsports and playing to the lowest hanging fruit without thought. I see this often. As as a board member of the Irish Seal Sanctuary I have been considered a conservationist and even as an ‘anti’ at times. I am happy to support field sports, I shoot and fish. I was delighted to be able to tell a large group of environmentalists that I have been to a bullfight to see what actually happens. I also travelled on a boat exporting live cattle to Belgium. I would rather live and die like a Spanish fighting bull anytime. I otter hunted as a kid and beagled, enjoyed the days and yet never saw a hare or otter killed by hounds. 24
Banning the importation of hunting trophies is popular move, but a bit of thought shows that trophy hunting supports jobs and also the very animals hunted. If an animal has a value it will be protected. I quote the Southern White Rhino as an example. In south Africa they can be hunted for trophies so are a valuable resource, Unlike the Northern White Rhino where trophy hunting is banned. The northern variety is now functionally extinct, with only two females left alive. Southern White rhino are now doing very well. Now I hear that these ‘personalities’ are targeting lead shot as a means to get an end to shooting. If public health is their concern, I would point to more direct influences such as farmed salmon which is still marketed as a healthy food. This heavy metal approach was tried in the US and rules were introduced to have certain lead free
Spring 2022 Irish Country Sports and Country Life
zones, such as areas where waterfowl gather. They were picking up lead shot as grit to help with digestion but some died of lead poisoning. A lot of work has been done in the States trying to find a replacement for lead tungstun and stainless steel shot among others. I think if lead was such a problem there would be direct evidence of the harm it does to the environment long before now. How long has lead been used - hundreds if not thousands of years. What I find most irritating about a lot of these people is their ignorance of what actually happens and few would accompany a hunt or a shooter to see the truth. Also they are happy to forget that some of their heroes like David Attenborough and Gerald Durrell started out hunting wild animals for zoos, and Peter Scott who founded WWF was a keen wildflower who used plenty of lead shot in his time.
