dft he45 ue56uj 4tdb by Derek Kolush

REWILDING: WHAT IT WOULD REALLY MEAN FOR OUR WILDLIFE

20 1

Into the woods on a spring evening

OUT OF NOTHING

How to create a shoot from scratch NORTHERLY DELIGHTS

In search of Britain’s most affordable sport

NE W ENTRY

BIG GAME HUNTING

WHEN SHOULD A WHY IT’S ESSENTIAL YOUNGSTER START? FOR CONSERVATION

DOG OF THE WEEK

Minnie Minnie is an international open field trial winner and a first-class shooting companion with uncanny retrieving skills. She has bags of natural ability and was a joy to train, but retains plenty of the cocker quirkiness we all know and love. Owned by Jon and Dana Rees. Photographed by Nick Ridley

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It’s about more than the catch Every time I open a newspaper, I end up reading a quote from someone somewhere about how much they’re looking forward to getting abroad for a bit of sun when we’re truly out of the woods. I sort of get where they’re coming from, but there’s more to life than cocktails on the beach. Last week, I went to North Uist to try to catch some fish. The loch the hotel owner pointed me in the direction of is one of those places, he told me over breakfast, where you either have the best day’s fishing of your life or one of the worst. When I arrived at the loch, I saw, after about three casts, a hind swimming through the water. It was an extraordinary sight. Some hours later, just before I settled down to a beer and a sandwich, I caught a half-pounder. It was to be my only fish of the day but, just as the sun was going down, I heard a corncrake — my first. The following morning the hotel owner asked me what sort of day I’d had. “One of the best,” I told him — because, after all, there’s much more to fishing than catching fish. Patrick Galbraith, Editor

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Stalking in spring A trio of fine roebuck

A sporting education When should youngsters start?

Kings of the hill Picking a team of top royal Shots

A shoot from scratch How to create sport on a shoestring

Time for some plains speaking The benefits of big game hunting

Stalker seal of approval We test the best stalking trousers

Gundog training Are your commands clear enough?

The reality of rewilding Why man’s role in rural areas is key

Follow Patrick on Twitter @paddycgalbraith

Contents NEWS & OPINION

06 NEWS

REGULARS

COUNTRY DIARY

FEATURES

KENNEL DIARY

SPORTING LIFE

STALKER DIARY

STALKING

40 CATLOW

YOUNG SHOTS

GUNDOGS

ROYALTY

VINTAGE TIMES

CREATING A SHOOT

COOKERY

BIG GAME

FISHING

TROUSER TEST

GAMEKEEPER

GUNDOG TRAINING

AFRICA

SHARPSHOOTER

LETTERS

REWILDING

60 ANSWERS

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 5

NEWS Herring and lesser black-backed gulls (pictured) were removed from the general licences

Natural England’s own gull: fragile waders pay the price Predatory herring and lesser black-backed gulls are overwhelming the upland breeding sites of curlew — and gamekeepers’ hands are tied

ALAN WARD; SARAH FARNSWORTH; ALAMY

he failure of Natural England’s licensing scheme is becoming tragically apparent as the upland breeding sites of waders such as the curlew and lapwing are hit hard by bands of predatory gulls. In a complex series of changes following campaign group Wild Justice’s failed 2019 challenge to the general licences, lesser black-backed and herring gulls were removed from the general licences for England. These changes meant that a specific licence was required to protect nesting species from the large flocks of the birds that come to the uplands in spring. The system introduced by Natural England operates on a quota basis, with licences for a maximum number of gulls issued each year. In a blog written last spring, Dave Slater, Natural England’s director for wildlife licensing, said

that the changes had been made because of “strong evidence of serious population decline in these two species”. At the time, gamekeepers and scientists warned of the potential consequences and, during the spring of 2020, upland land managers recorded 1,355 incidents of gulls predating lapwings, curlew and golden plover (News, 26 August 2020). Since the system was introduced, estates and keepers

flocks move in. In Calderdale and Nidderdale, gamekeepers were able to film and photograph large flocks of the birds at work taking wader chicks and eating curlew eggs. One heartbreaking film showed lapwings frantically trying to distract and drive away the gulls; however, they were rapidly overwhelmed and the predators can be seen diving down to seize chicks. Ian Coghill, author of Moorland Matters, said: “There are around a million large gulls

“The birds can be seen diving down to seize lapwing chicks” have reported to Shooting Times that their licence applications were either declined or that they simply received no response for long periods of time. Now keepers have yet again been left with no choice but to stand by and watch as gull

6 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

in the UK, where there used to be tens of thousands. The massive growth in population in the 20th century occurred in the face of successful local control, to prevent damage to rare birds, by gamekeepers and conservationists. The local

control achieved its purpose without damage to the national gull population. Now Natural England has created a system where it is impossible to conduct that local gull control.” Matt Cross

Email your stories / shootingtimes@futurenet.com

Strong demand for poults Game farmers have added their voice to those predicting a strong return to shooting this year. Dominic Boulton, who runs Perfect Poults and is a former chairman of the Game Farmers’ Association, told Shooting Times: “Recent progress on bringing the COVID-19 pandemic under control has stimulated a greater degree of confidence than we had reason to expect at the beginning of the year. Many customers are reporting strong demand for shooting this coming season, with many sold out and some considering extra days to cater for demand.” Across the country, game farmers have reported that

Weekend Twitter poll When do you prefer to go stalking? 66% First thing 34% At dusk follow us @shootingtimes

Respondents: 91

To do this week Game farmers are hatching many more chicks as demand soars

they are hatching many more chicks this season following a surge in orders early this year and in expectation of more orders coming in as bookings continue to flow. Mr Boulton added: “It is too early to draw any

firm conclusions, as we are still several weeks from the first birds of the season being delivered to release pens. “Overall, however, we seem to be well on the way to recovery.” Hang out your

Cost of lockdown for dogs A gundog handler and breeder has told Shooting Times about her experience of dealing with lockdown spaniel and labrador puppies. The experienced trainer, who asked not to be named, has found herself dealing with “lots and lots of dogs with serious issues”. The problems she has been forced to tackle

include biting, aggression and extreme timidity. She went on: “There is no doubt people who should never have bought puppies did so during lockdown, and there’s also no doubt a lot of dogs were bred from that should never have been.” Spaniel Aid also reported a surge in problem spaniels referred to it. In an appeal

for support, the charity said: “We are inundated with biting, guarding cockers. This is turning into a huge issue in this breed and it is so sad. Since Friday, we have had 12 owner surrender requests; two were for springers, one with no issues and one that had bitten a child, and the remainder were for cockers.”

F I S H buzzers on the washing line. The washing line — a high floating dry fly on the point and two or three buzzers on droppers — can be a deadly trout fishing tactic as the weather warms up and hatches get going. The game

S H O O T season is just over four months away, so why not book a couple of lessons to get back into the swing of things — or even put together a team for a simulated game day? Rural businesses will be pleased to get the cash in and it will provide a great chance to catch up with friends after a long and tedious lockdown.

There has been a surge in dogs referred to Spaniel Aid, with behaviours such as biting and aggression

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 7

NEWS The Government is proposing to ban the import of trophies from endangered animals abroad

Trophy import ban ‘for endangered animals only’

ANDY HOOK; HAMISH MITCHELL; BASC; GETTY IMAGES

A fight to ensure the revenue for conservation projects from hunting abundant species is not reduced appears to have been successful Campaigners may have won an important victory in the struggle over the Animals Abroad Bill, which the Government is planning to introduce to limit the import of hunting trophies into the UK. A failure to explicitly mention the bill in the Queen’s Speech led some on both sides of the debate to conclude that the Government had stepped away from the plan. Eduardo Goncalves, the founder of the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting, misleadingly claimed that “trophy hunters will be rubbing their hands with glee at this omission”. However, the text of the speech published on the Government’s website made it clear that a reference to legislation to “ensure the United Kingdom has, and promotes, the highest standards of animal welfare” includes the Animals Abroad Bill. A briefing pack released to journalists also explained that the Government was proposing to ban “the import of hunting

THEY SAID WHAT

Who said it: Dominic Dyer, animal welfare activist

trophies from endangered animals abroad” and to end “the advertising for sale here of low-welfare experiences abroad through an Animals Abroad Bill”. The inclusion of the word ‘endangered’ is being viewed as highly significant. Speculation that the import restrictions would be limited to endangered animals has been widespread in recent weeks. The

they have been taking notice of the evidence presented to them. It is hard to say without further clarity, but it is clear that any ban will not be ‘complete’. I have some hope that conservation science and evidence will inform the final legislation, if and when it is passed.” A painstaking search by Shooting Times of the CITES international trade database found that, in the past three years, almost

“It is clear any ban will not be ‘complete’ — they’ve been taking notice of the evidence” change came after conservationists launched a campaign to ensure that the revenue for conservation projects from hunting abundant species was not reduced. Zoologist and broadcaster Professor Adam Hart told Shooting Times: “The fact that the phrase ‘endangered animals’ is used is noteworthy. I think it suggests that

no trophies from animals categorised as ‘endangered’ by the IUCN were imported into the UK. The only trophies that would have been barred by the new legislation were a small number of elephant tusks and skins, a trophy from a farmed scimitar oryx (above) and a trophy from a Russian goat called a tur. Matt Cross

“Great work by Bedfordshire Against Trophy Hunting.” Tell me more: Last week, a group calling itself Bedfordshire Against Trophy Hunting celebrated ‘exposing a racket’ at Wrest Park (right). Conservationists were quick to point out that the pictures it had come across showed stalkers culling muntjac, a non-native invasive species that is destroying woodland.

8 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

Email your stories / shootingtimes@futurenet.com

New licences for gamebird release on protected sites Licences to allow the release of gamebirds on and around protected sites have been issued by Defra. The licences came about as a response to attempts by campaign group Wild Justice to disrupt pheasant releasing. Under the new licence, if birds are released on protected sites, they must not be released at densities of more than 700 birds per hectare of pen. In the 500m buffer zone around the site, the density of birds can reach a maximum of 1,000 birds per hectare of pen. This is already recommended as the maximum release density by the GWCT. Glynn Evans, BASC’s head of game and gundogs, said: “It remains BASC’s position that this legislation is unnecessarily bureaucratic and disproportionate, especially compared with

other activities continuing to take place. However, it is a significant dilution to what was being lobbied for by those who wish to see shooting restricted. This announcement is not the end of gamebird release or shooting in these areas.

“The clear sunset clause of four years within the legislation is welcome news.” The restrictions only affect those releasing birds on or around European protected sites in England.

BASC appoints new head of firearms A top firearms scientist h been appointed as BASC new head of firearms. Martin Parker was previously chief scientist at the National Ballistics Intelligence Service. Mr Parker said: “I am delighted to have joined BASC as head of firearms. I believe that both the police service and legitimate shooters have the same goal — namely, for the sport to continue with the minimum of bureaucracy while preventingfirearmsfallingintothewrong hands. It is my job to harmonise BASC and the police services’ approaches, to our members’ undoubted benefit.”

‘Hunting obsessed’ PCC loses his job The general licences for protected sites take effect from 31 May

English Heritage slams stalkers English Heritage has condemned photographs appearing to show a stalking operation on one of its properties. The pictures were obtained by activists and show what they claim to be Scandinavian hunting clients posing with shot

NEWS IN BRIEF

muntjac at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire (see Quote of the Week, left). An English Heritage spokesman said: “We’re shocked and saddened by these images. We do not allow hunting for sport at any of the historic sites in

The images reportedly showed a stalking operation at Wrest Park

our care. In accordance with relevant legislation, at some locations it is necessary for us to work with third parties to manage particular local animal populations. It’s very important to us that this is done humanely and respectfully. We’re taking this matter extremely seriously and have started a full investigation.” However, local deerstalkers struggled to see the problem. One, who did not wish to be named, told Shooting Times: “Muntjac are an increasing problem in Bedfordshire. Shooting is the only legal way to control them, and if someone can make a business from controlling pests and producing meat, I can’t see the issue.”

A Police and Crime Commissioner who spent £34,000 on review of hunting offences has lost his job in the local elections. In 2019, enquiries by Shooting Times revealed that David Keane had spent the equivalent of a police constable’s annual salary on the report, despite the force only recording 18 hunting-related offences in the previous year. Shooting Times also discovered that Mr Keane had met with the Cheshire Hunt Saboteurs. In 2018, Mr Keane rebuked the force’s officers after they said about claims made by hunt saboteursthat“manycomments(made onsocialmedia)arebasedoninaccurate information that do not reflect a balancedviewofthemattersdiscussed”.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 9

LETTERS LE T TER OF THE WEEK ISSN: 0037-4164 Shooting Times, Future PLC, 161 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9AP. For editorial enquiries: shootingtimes@futurenet.com For picture enquiries: max.tremlett@futurenet.com Subscription hotline: 0330 333 1113 help@magazinesdirect.com Editor Patrick Galbraith Deputy editor Ollie Harvey Commissioning editor Steve Faragher Group art director Dean Usher Art editor Rob Farmer Picture editor Max Tremlett Group production editor Di Cross Production editors Sarah Potts, Nicola Jane Swinney Digital editor Charlotte Peters charlotte.peters@futurenet.com shootinguk.co.uk MD, Country Lifestyle Mark Winterton Chief content officer Angela O’Farrell Head of editorial operations Jacquie Spanton Content director Simon Kirrane Design director Simon Maynard Advertising Alex Armstrong 0330 390 6502 alex.armstrong@futurenet.com Laurence Pierce 07971 605143 laurence.pierce@futurenet.com Advertisement director Toni Cole 0330 390 6579; toni.cole@futurenet.com Senior advertisement production manager Jo Crosby jo.crosby@futurenet.com Advertisement production Peter Burton peter.burton@futurenet.com International licensing and syndication Shooting Times is available for licensing and syndication. Contact the licensing team to discuss partnership opportunities Head of print licensing Rachel Shaw licensing@futurenet.com Innovator (for loose and bound-in inserts) 020 3148 3710 Can’t find ST? 020 3148 3300 Back issues 01795 662976 support@mags-uk.com

Shooting Times is the official weekly journal of BASC and the CPSA. BASC, Marford Mill, Rossett LL12 0HL, tel 01244 573000; CPSA, PO Box 750, Woking, GU24 0YU, tel 01483 485400 We reserve the right to edit letters. Letters will not be used unless the author is prepared to have their name and county of residence published. Letters should be sent to: The Editor, Shooting Times, Future PLC, 161 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9AP, or stletters@futurenet.com. Please include a telephonenumberandpostal address.

SARAH FARNSWORTH; PA IMAGES; DUNCAN IRELAND; JAMES MARCHINGTON

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THIS WEEK’S COVER IMAGE WAS SUPPLIED BY ALAMY

What price a puppy? G Clapton says that dog breeders who charge the current high prices for their puppies are not putting their dogs’ welfare first (Letters, 5 May). Doubtless this is true for a certain sector. However, small-time breeders who only take a litter every few years to keep a pup for themselves still have to rear the whole litter — expensive in time and money if done

properly — and place the other pups. If these are offered below the market price, there is a risk of attracting unscrupulous people who intend to sell the pup on at a substantial profit. This also compromises welfare. Seen as a long-term investment, current dog prices are still reasonable. Perhaps dogs were too cheap before. Jackie Drakeford, by email

Selling puppies cheaply risks attracting the wrong sort of buyer

IN ASSOCIATION WITH KING’S GINGER Each week, the best letter wins a bottle of King’s Ginger — the ideal drink to enjoy after a cold stalk. For more details visitthekingsginger.com Please note, we are unable to send out prizes as our offices are closed.

FIGHT OUR CORNER Is the new mantra “we must embrace self-regulation enthusiastically” merely another excuse for doing nothing? Each time the shooting community is faced with another restriction to our way of life — which seems to happen on an almost monthly basis — the fieldsports organisations appear to simply roll over and agree to whatever we are legislated to comply with that limits, and may ultimately put an end to, what we do in the countryside. At the same time, they’ll charge you to attend a seminar to learn how to work within the new limitations. The latest proposal in a long line of restrictions is the 500m land grab by Defra/Natural England (News, 3 March). We’ve already seen a 300m restriction on shooting near Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) brought about by the same bodies under the general licences in January, which the fieldsports organisations responded to with the comment “it’s a workable solution”. I beg to differ. Here’s the rub. My neighbour has several large areas of designated SSSI ground, some of which borders my land, that

10 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

under the new general licences, I cannot shoot within 300m of. It is my land, but I cannot carry out what I wish and need to do because someone has decided to land-grab my property rights. Under the latest suggestion regarding the release of gamebirds within 500m of those SSSIs, I will in effect not be able to run my shoot. Gamebirds will stray, they have no concept of measurement, so what’s next — a 1,000m land grab? Are the fieldsports organisations, perhaps more particularly the CLA, going to sue Defra/Natural England on our behalf for the loss of land use? Somehow I doubt it. What about land I rent for shooting with a perfectly legal long-term lease that may be restricted — can I claim compensation for my rent or how do I legally forgo the lease? How much land throughout England is now useless for shooting just because some anti with a modicum of power within a non-governmental organisation deems it so. Whatever happened to “an Englishman’s home is his castle” — are we now living in a totalitarian state? Who comes up with these ridiculous ideas? I think we all know the answer to that, but

what do the organisations that should be fighting our corner do? Nothing. Are they all in league with Wild Justice, the League Against Cruel Sports, Natural England et al? Nick Elsdon, Suffolk

GWCT: TOO PC? Mike Swan from the GWCT advocates limiting range when shooting with steel shot (Is this the end of the high life?, 5 May) in order to reduce wounding. Wounding is a well-known facet of steel shot, recognised worldwide wherever it is used. Mike also recommends clay practice with steel shot, but many clay grounds ban the use of steel shot because of the risk of ricochet. Another unfortunate facet of steel shot. In the same issue, it is reported that Forestry Commission rangers are finding non-lead bullets ineffective, and this lack of confidence in them is encouraging the dreadful practice of neck or head shots on deer (Deerstalkers take nonlead initiative, 5 May). I have a picture in my mind, which will always be with me, of the result of a failed head shot, probably taken earlier in the day, on a fallow doe.

Email your letters / stletters@futurenet.com This poor animal stood motionless with a lowered head, its nose resting on the ground. Its shot-off lower jaw was obvious. I am told that the beast’s fate was death from dehydration, and that that would take several days of undoubted agony. A few years ago, the GWCT supported the prohibition of poison baited hoppers to control grey squirrels. These pests are now not controlled where they once were and populations have exploded. In consequence, many thousands of songbird nests will have been plundered that would have been spared, their chicks killed or their eggs eaten. On top of that, thousands of young native broadleaved trees will have been ruined through bark stripping. Where does the word ‘conservation’ fit in with all of this? In an attempt to gain a politically correct image, the GWCT, like our other shooting organisations, has forgotten the basics of unintended consequences. In the case of the lead shot ban, it is a self-inflicted wound from which all our shooting sports will suffer. Stephen Judd, East Sussex

Mike Swan responds: I have no proper expertise over non-lead bullets, but agree wholeheartedly with Mr Judd that any tendency to try head shots should be discouraged for the reasons he explains. I would also like to correct him on the question of warfarin and grey squirrels. The GWCT actually lobbied both the authorities and the manufacturers to carry out the work needed to continue the licence for its use, but we were told that collection of the EU-required safety data was too expensive for such a small market. On the question of steel, what I actually ask is not that we reduce the range at which we shoot birds, but that we stop shooting at them beyond the reliable range

VIRTUAL REALITY Mobile phones are undeniably a fantastic instrument for keeping in touch with one another and, more recently, they keep us in touch with modern trends in the shape of news feeds. I have just received one from a game developer claiming to be looking for a change of theme from revenge. How nice, I thought, to give the gaming fraternity something different. So impressed was I that I offered them a scenario I think many Shooting Times readers might sign up to. Here goes. Imagine a post-rewilding situation where farmers in rural Great

of a shotgun, whatever shot we use. When good Shots boast of their drives being in the “one for seven shots” category and above, they are treating high birds as playthings, and they do not seem to care that many can be wounded as part of the game. Therefore, if the change from lead forces a few people to review what is actually sporting, and rein back their excesses, I consider that will be a very good thing. Twenty-five years of wildfowling without lead leads me to the conclusion that the responsible majority will hardly notice the change.

FAILED AGAIN Oh look, another failed prosecution by the League Against Cruel Sports (News, 12 May). How many more times can LACS try to persuade the prosecution services that trail hunting with hounds, or flushing foxes to Guns, as in this particular instance, is illegal? It is a fact that the foxhunting packs in England, Wales and Scotland have worked very hard to provide their

Britain need to hunt down wolves, wildcats, bears, wild boar and predatory birds to protect their families, property, pets and livestock from being destroyed, attacked or eaten. Sign me up. I do not waste my time on computer games right now, but that might just tempt me in. Phase two could involve anglers trying to restore the rivers where the unplanned and ill-advised activity of beavers has blocked waterways and destroyed fisheries and tree plantations. I do believe I have unearthed a seam of previously untapped entertainment here. Phil Trotman, by email supporters with entertainment while staying within the law. Where are the oh-so-valiant monitors from LACS when vicious thugs with pitbulls hold illegal dogfights? Or when coursing meets are held by raucous groups of men placing large bets on this now illegal sport? It’s much easier to tackle law-abiding citizens, even if they are on horseback. No doubt the antis will jump up and down and shout ‘whataboutery’, but that’s not the point. Gamekeepers have worked with the police to help flush out those who are involved in these illegal activities. How much better would it be if animal welfare charities also asked the shooting and hunting communities for their help to stamp out coursing and dogfighting? Keepers have helped firefighters many times when some idiot has dropped a cigarette on tinder-dry moorland. They know where to go on the moors and how to get there. I bet they could supply the same intel to track down other miscreants. Can’t we join forces for good? Alison Hever, by email

‘‘The wildlife of today is not ours to dispose of as we please. We have it in trust. We must account for it to those who come after.’’ King George VI

NEXT WEEK IN

A VERY DIFFERENT FIELD How woodpigeon control has changed since Archie Coats’s day.

WHAT MATTERS MOST? What do paying Guns really want from a day’s shooting?

LOSING THE LEAD Out after a roe with non-toxic shot.

SHINING A LIGHT Fox control: why the oldfashioned lamp still has its place.

... AND MUCH MORE!

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 11

CountryDiary

Patrick Laurie

Set up to tackle their decline, the tireless Working for Waders project has highlighted just how vulnerable these ground-nesting birds are

Punishing influence

I imagined that the cameras would confirm a growing suspicion that badgers have driven the decline of birds such as oystercatchers and lapwings in this part of Galloway. Badger numbers have

Predators and agricultural damage represent a huge challenge for nesting lapwings in the UK

some of the obstacles that prevent enlightened debates on this subject. In the event, the camera project has taught me a huge amount about the challenges facing breeding waders. We’re hardly even halfway through the breeding season and it’s clear that while badgers are a major problem, other issues are even more pressing. Even from the outset, studying lapwings at close quarters was an irresistible reminder that these birds are extraordinarily valuable and precious. Parked up watching the birds display

“My exploration resolved into a castiron desire to help these precious birds” exploded over the past few years, and it’s fair to reckon that they now outnumber foxes in many places by a factor of five to one. Badgers exert a punishing influence on lapwings, so I went into the project hoping to capture some of that predation on camera. Badgers have many friends in high places, and it’s only through a steady accumulation of hard proof that we can ever hope to develop progressive conversations about badger management. It’s all too easy to dismiss criticism of badgers as bias or anecdotal prejudice. Video evidence would provide concrete proof, and it might help to break down

through my binoculars, I was staggered by emotions of sheer delight to be around them. Over several days, my exploration resolved into a cast-iron desire to help them. The first nest was completed on 4 April. Despite working with the farmer, a fumble in communications at my end meant that the field was spread with slurry soon afterwards and the nest was lost. I had always imagined that agricultural operations were an easily avoidable hazard and that nests lost to rolling, harrowing or slurry-spreading simply represented a degree of easily remediable carelessness. In truth, it’s extremely hard to keep eggs safe from agricultural workings.

12 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

After lots of cooperation and hard work, I managed to locate a second nest and mark it with red pegs so that it was not destroyed when the field was rolled a fortnight later. That was a mighty success, but it really drove home the significance of agricultural damage and disturbance to wader nests. Put simply, there’s a good chance that a badger will probably destroy your lapwing nests, but a roller will definitely destroy them. That’s a fine margin, but it’s significant. With a stroke of misfortune, the lapwing’s nest was finally predated by a hedgehog — a species that has become famously scarce since badger numbers increased. I began this project under the fairly pessimistic belief that badgers had spelled the end for ground-nesting birds in Galloway. However, I soon learned how significant agricultural damage can be for lapwings, and that put the significance of badgers into perspective. I have no doubt that badgers are a leading cause of trouble, but nature is far too complex to suffer a single explanation for anything. Patrick Laurie manages a conservation programme to promote farming and conservation with a particular focus on wading birds and blackgrouse, and he runs a farm in Galloway.

ALAMY

’ve been involved with the Working for Waders project in Scotland for the past few years, and it’s been an interesting journey. The project is based on improving collaboration between academics and practitioners, and I’ve been really pleased to see positive, proactive conversations taking place between conservationists and farmers, birdwatchers and gamekeepers. Recognising that we all have a huge amount of common ground when it comes to wading birds, the project has developed a really encouraging atmosphere of partnership working. One of the many strands of work generated by Working for Waders in 2021, was the launch of a new study to place cameras on wader nests during the spring. It’s no secret that wader declines are often being driven by poor breeding success, so 25 cameras were sent out to farmers, crofters and gamekeepers right across Scotland to find out more. For my part, I took three cameras, which I planned to set up on my own land and also in fields that belong to my neighbours farther down the glen.

Sporting life

Finding your fields of sporting Elysium If you know where to look, pockets of shootable countryside are still available to those without a banker’s bonus, as Richard Negus reveals

MARK BEEDIE; CRAIG MCCANN-MCMILLAN; DUNCAN IRELAND; ALAMY

n the rare occasion I tune my truck radio from the local station to a national broadcaster, I am struck by the length and magnitude of the traffic reports I hear. While I blithely trundle along near-empty Suffolk lanes to get to whichever farm I am working at, the voice from the speakers tells of tailbacks, tail lights and turmoil. The average daily commute for the UK’s workforce is one hour and 38 minutes. How many Shooting Times readers also endure such soulless hours spent in traffic jams or on overcrowded trains to get to their place of work? To alleviate the woes of these lengthy commutes, many buy homes in the suburbs. While this

is a pragmatic solution, it does mean that where you have to live is, often, not where you want to live. This is particularly true for those of a sporting bent. The commuter belts of our major cities may be leafy, but on the whole this is a sanitised countryside, overly stuffed with your fellow man. The sporting options that cling on here are often jealously guarded, astronomically expensive or closed shops, almost impossible to access. To buy a house in the rural enclaves of the Home Counties requires an eye-watering financial outlay, not to mention that your choice of gun, attire and dirty dogs will single you out to neighbours as a dangerous threat to property prices and society.

Not just for the select few: with a little research, you may find you can afford your dream sporting life after all

14 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

But all is not lost. Lockdown has proved that working from a home office is possible. High-speed broadband is slowly creeping its way into the furthest reaches of our islands. Zoom is replacing face to face as the preferred method of carrying out business meetings. It is no longer a prerequisite to live in close proximity to a major conurbation to hold down a corporate role. Sois now the perfect time to sell up and turn your back upon 29 Acacia Avenue?

Spend it wisely

A perusal of the property website Rightmove reveals that the average house price in Woking, that most leafy and archetypal of commuter towns, is a shade over £557,000. That sort of money can buy some serious real estate, with sport on tap, if you know where to look. When taking the leap to sell up in the suburbs, your

Sporting life first thoughts for the location of your new dream home may well turn to locations truly remote. The fly in the ointment for living among, say, the snipe bogs and smoky malts of Islay or sea trout and stags on Exmoor are the logistics of living in this glorious isolation. While inconsequential when young and healthy, in older age, having to drive for an hour to visit your nearest shop, doctor, chiropodist — and eventually undertaker — becomes increasingly impractical. It is, of course, possible to buy somewhere in the ‘real’ countryside without having to be either a backwoodsman or a millionaire. The ‘average’ dwelling where I live in mid-Suffolk, for example, is some £200,000 cheaper than its counterpart in Woking. My region is unashamedly rural, yet not so remote that you become a hermit. But our landscape is 98% agricultural, predominately arable; this is by no stretch of the imagination a wilderness. If you are in search of an affordable sporting home in wilder territory, with the succour of services within reasonable reach, here are two suggestions for where you may find your fields of Elysium.

East Norfolk

Great Yarmouth is the gateway between the Broads and the North Sea. The town itself struggles on as a holiday destination. The Golden Mile is sadly tarnished these days;

Salmon and sea trout fishing on the Wear is excellent and only a fraction of the cost of Scottish rivers

cheap flights to the Spanish costas have lured away the tourists who once flocked here in droves. For the sportsman, however, Yarmouth and the east Norfolk villages, jutting out into the cold North Sea, offer delights beyond measure. This region is earthy, honest and largely free from complaining incomers bleating about cocks crowing, muck spreading and dawn-flight banging. Take, for example, the village of Fritton with its Norman church and historic lake — once famed as a duck decoy, now part of a 1,000acre rewilding project. Admittedly, Fritton itself does not have the bucolic visage of Blakeney, an hour up the coast in north Norfolk, but the

average price for a detached property in the city banker-beloved Blakeney is £1,176,667, while in forgotten Fritton it’s £435,000. What Fritton lacks in whimsy it makes up for with wildfowl — this is the heart of Great Yarmouth Wildfowlers’ country. The club has 34 separate marshes and, for a little over £200, members enjoy some of the finest goose shooting found anywhere in the world, while the foreshore at Breydon vies with the Solway and Wash as the ancestral home of the sport. If you are not inclined to share your fowling with others, a grazing marsh of some eight hectares near Acle recently sold for £100,000, meaning you can

County Durham has lots to offer, from some of the finest grouse moors to a number of DIY syndicates shooting a few days a season

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Sporting life farm cattle in the summer and shoot pinkfeet under the moon in winter. Keen anglers are well catered for here. The national record for a rivercaught pike, a rod-bending 45lb, was landed in 2009 at Thurne, north-west of Yarmouth. Of course, pike angling on the Broads is nothing like fishing a spate river. For starters, much of the fishing on these waters costs either a few pounds or is free. Stalking is plentiful, particularly for those keen on bagging a Chinese

“Tow Law produces terriers that seem fashioned from steel” water deer — the east coast is their UK stronghold. East Norfolk offers little in the way of the ‘smart’ driven shoots found inland; however, numerous small syndicates and farm shoots abound and the costs reflect this ersatz type of game shooting. Great Yarmouth and its en nvirons boast a sporting history to be proud of; it is a place e without pretence. To live here and be on hand when th he pinks arrive from the norllands or the wigeon come e in from Scroby Sands is worth any price.

County Durham

Britain seems to have forgotten the land of the Prince Bishops. Yorkshire, be it Dales or Moors, is known to most, as is the wild beauty of Northumberland, the Lake District and Westmorland. Yet when was the last time you heard anyone wax lyrically about County Durham? It is a surprise. The county boasts a diversely beautiful landscape that rubs shoulders organically with the marks from its recent industrial past. The Durham Dales, Weardale and the

While driven days are notoriously pricey, walked-up sport over dogs is often a realistic alternative

Derwent Valley have largely gone ‘undiscovered’ by the sorts of people you hope don’t discover it. Grouse thrive here and, while driven days are best suited to those with deeper pockets, a walked-up day over pointers is a realistic and memorable possibility for around £100 a brace. Adam Morton from Durham-based Morton Sporting is passionate about his home county. “County Durham can offer a wide range of sporting opportunities. We have something for everyone here, from some of the finest grousse moors in the UK to numerous sma all DIY syndicates shooting a h ndful of days a season. Salmon ha and d sea trout fishing on the Wear is exccellent too for a fraction of the st of Scottish rivers,” he says. County Durham is a mecca for working dogs. My cocker Mabel is a born and bred ‘Smoggie’ and she and I shared a superb day beating on the moors above Ruffside. The bleak hilltop town of Tow Law produces a strain of terrier so hard bitten, they appear made from the steel that was once smelted there.

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For stalkers, buying your own woodland is an eminently affordable prospect. Prices hereabouts are some £2,000 an acre below the national average. The local architecture is designed to withstand the harshest of weathers — winter in Weardale will definitely be a shock to southern emigres. Buildings stand stolid and resolute like craggy nightclub bouncers. You can buy an example of one of these right now in the village of Whittonstall — a threebedroomed stone-built cottage, with plenty of space for kennels, is yours for £240,000. It may pay to not tarry over making a decision to move from the suburbs. Estate agent Savills surveyed 700 registered buyers in May last year and noted then that 40% of its respondents were looking at village locations. One year on, and confidence in the feasibility of working from home has increased. Finding a hidden sporting Elysium to live in looks soon to become either very elusive or very expensive.

Stalking

When one plus-one equals three The pressure of stalking with a photographer in tow is anything but relaxing, but a trio of roebuck in the bag more than make up for it WRITTEN BY PAUL CHILDERLEY

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY OLI LEES

A young plantation is a good place to spot a roebuck or two, and Paul isn’t disappointed

nybody who knows me or speaks to me about stalking roebuck in the spring knows that it is my time to be alone and to reflect on the busy season of game shooting and deerstalking with clients. After an exceptionally difficult year, we still managed to have a reasonable game season and record numbers of deer were culled on the estates. As soon as one season finishes, I’m already in full swing for the next, so heading out to the beautiful Gloucestershire Cotswolds is a time for me to gather my thoughts and de-stress.

Unsettled

After I agreed to write for Shooting Times, the Editor asked if a photographer could join my next stalk. I hesitantly agreed and a date was set. On the way, my thoughts were not only on the unsettled weather, but also on my new stalking companion for the evening and whether he was au fait with stalking or if he was going to ruin my evening’s stalk, especially as we really needed to get a few bucks off the ground. I met Oli Lees in the local village, we had a brief conversation and I discovered he had been out Paul Childerley glasses the fields from the edge of the woodland, searching for deer

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Stalking stalking once before and had experience with shotguns. We went to the area and, on our arrival, the foresters were heading into the centre of the wood to do some logging, with their black labrador barking all the way up the main ride. A buck stood halfway up the ride and disappeared as soon as it heard the dog. So far, we were not off to a good start. We pulled up next to the log stack where the foresters were banging, chainsawing and shouting. So my brief to Oli about not slamming car doors and talking quietly was already out of the window. We were in the centre of the wood and, after a short discussion, decided to head to one of the spots where I could guarantee a buck in the young plantation.

Stressful time

I expected to see a buck somewhere underneath the beech trees on the top edge of the plantation and, as if by appointment, there he was — a magnificent, mature, malformed creature. But Oli took one step too far, spooking the buck back into cover. Even after manoeuvring on and off the sticks, I couldn’t get a clear shot, and a few more paces sent the buck well away. My time to de-stress was becoming more stressful by the minute, with the noisy foresters followed by my new companion blowing my chance with the buck. The weather was starting to brighten up and the wind had dropped, so I hoped my luck was

A roebuck catches a glimpse of the stalkers in the woodland

about to change. We soon got close to a couple of does, and I educated Oli on the approach and movement so he was able to get a few photos. We stalked past and headed for the top side where the bank rolled away. As soon as we walked out, there was another young buck right on the ridgeline. It was too dangerous for the shot. This evening was not going to plan. We followed the buck into the wood, hoping he would break to the arable fields below, but he managed to sneak past us for another day. Thinking about the task ahead, with the extra person tagging along, I decided to view some more distant areas where we could possibly spot a buck then work

Paul is keenly aware that the stalk needs to be a successful one

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a planned approach. Luckily, there was a buck in the dip between the two woods, hidden between rough grass about 350m away. I knew this would be a good chance to get one this evening. The wind was right and after being out for an hour and a half, Oli was picking up my style of stalking well, mimicking my actions.

Restless

We dropped below the hedging and Cotswold stone wall, gaining a good few metres and cutting down the distance between us and the buck. Getting to the slight gap in the hawthorn, we both slowly clambered over the stone wall without making a sound. The buck had moved from the outside top of the tall grass to the thickest area in the middle and was heading back to the wood. Time was short. I asked Oli to keep close so there was only one body shape to catch the buck’s eye. I set the sticks half-ready under the rifle as I was crouch-stalking towards the buck. The target was restless and ready to go. I quickly pinged the rangefinder. He was just over 200m away. This was my chance. The buck was in long cover, so I could only take a neck shot. The deer dropped and Oli and I breathed a sigh of relief. The pressure was off. Oli took a few more photos while I performed an elevated field gralloch. “What happens next?” he asked. “We carry on,” I replied. By this time the foresters’ noise had died off, so I decided to go to another favourite spot — a young ash

Stalking

After a successful shot, Paul collects the buck for gralloching

of the vehicles, and I asked if the light was still good enough for photos, but he was professional to the end and stayed with me, ensuring there was no time to myself. We headed to the boundary field of the first wood that we had bumped the malformed buck. We got to the gap in the wood, stood there and I glassed a cover crop of artichokes and rough ground, thinking there would be a buck in that area — no joy.

Strange shapes

plantation with good visibility all the way through. The sun was now behind the trees and every animal in the wood seemed to come alive. We didn’t see a thing, though, as we stalked along the narrow track. I guess the foresters and their black lab had ruined it for that day. We were just finishing the last 100m when, around the bend, there was a doe feeding along the edge of the track. On closer inspection with the binoculars, there was a buck behind her, standing in the tree line. Within seconds, the doe’s head was up. She was alert and sprang away, closely followed by the buck and another doe. It’s hard to tell what spooked her, whether it was my squeaky wellingtons, the quiet click of the camera, Oli’s rustling coat, our lack of headwear or the movement of my binoculars. At any rate, they had bolted.

where he stood. Heading over, I was explaining to Oli that it is very unusual for a buck to be this aggressive, but on the carcass inspection we discovered he was absolutely covered in ticks, all round his testicles, which would make anybody grumpy. Despite this, he was in good condition and was a strong-bodied buck for his age. The deer in this area have improved so much over the past 10 years. We headed back through the wood and chatted about the success of the evening. I explained to Oli how difficult it was stalking with a second person, especially one who needs to get his job done as well. We passed within a couple of hundred metres

Aggressive

I stayed there, ready on the sticks, as there was an immense amount of crashing as they ran and the noise did not stop. Then, all of a sudden, the buck charged back across the track way and attacked a hawthorn and a fallen branch like an angry teenager. I’ve never seen a buck so aggressive at this time of year. He was seriously annoyed. The buck gave one big swoop with his antlers and, in doing so, he caught a glimpse of us and stood there looking straight at us in defiance. The only shot placement was once again a neck shot, which dropped him

After field dressing the roebuck, Paul cleans the blood from his hands on a clump of moss

The final check was to look out over some fresh barley drilling that was about 6in tall and perfect for grazing. After searching every nook and cranny, I noticed a young doe about 80m in front of me, browsing on a hawthorn bush. After a few minutes, she decided she didn’t like the look of the strange shapes down below and decided to walk into the field. Suddenly, I caught movement a further 100m up the field. Without the binoculars, I could see it was a buck but, manoeuvring round with the sticks, I discovered it was

“The buck attacked a hawthorn like an angry teenager” the malformed buck that fled from us earlier. My heart started to pound with excitement. Not wanting to mess up the shot, I gathered my thoughts and took my time. The buck was not going anywhere, as he was having his first bite of the evening. I lined up on the neck and completed the hat-trick. I’m not a great fan of malformed bucks breeding, as I’m a purist of species and like the perfect uniformed heads to breed, so I was pleased to have taken it out. The buck is also a medal-class animal and marked the perfect ending to a very memorable evening. We collected the bucks and my good friend Stuart, the keeper, was overjoyed with three very cleanly shot carcasses ready for his venison orders this week. As for Oli and his camera, with all their faults, for a stalker, he has now become my lucky plus-one. To stalk with Childerley Sporting, visit childerleysporting.co.uk

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Young Shots

It’s never too early to fire their interest JAMIE HALL; DUNCAN IRELAND; SARAH FARNSWORTH; TOM SYKES

You can sow the seeds of sporting enthusiasm in a child long before they pick up a gun, but what is the right age to start, asks Simon Garnham

yebrows were raised at the last round of Home Office firearms licensing statistics when it was revealed that a seven-year-old had been approved for a shotgun certificate. That decision led to lively debate at my local clay ground. Opinions were split. A significant number of regulars felt that the decision offered fuel to antis and drew unnecessary attention to one of the last remaining liberal pieces of firearms legislation. Others expressed support for the decision, remembering that they, too, had begun shooting at a similar age.

The Home Office’s 271-page Guide on Firearms Licensing Law expresses three principles that must be met before a licence is granted. To obtain a firearm or shotgun certificate, the chief officer “must be satisfied that: (i) the applicant has good reason for having a weapon; (ii) the applicant is fit to be entrusted with a weapon; and (iii) the public safety or peace will not be endangered”. No one under the age of 15 may acquire a gun or use it without adult supervision. But children aged 14 may be granted a firearms licence and there is no minimum age for the granting of shotgun certificates.

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The Home Office in its guide also observes a number of interesting principles. Unlike the US, “gun ownership is a privilege not a right”. The legislation acknowledges that “the subject of minimum age to carry a firearm or shotgun is complicated” and “it is in the interests of safety that a young person who is to handle firearms should be properly taught at a relatively early age”. Which of us would not agree with this last observation? Like so many skills, children seem to learn much more quickly than adults. And so much of what a shooting day involves

Young Shots responsibility that privilege bestows. Were it not for the short-sightedness, ignorance or unnecessary caution of an overzealous social worker, he might well still be there. Many of my fellow clay Shots feel that anything which encourages the young into shooting at an early age is to be praised. On the other hand, which of us would honestly claim we could trust a seven-year-old even to brush his or her teeth competently without supervision? Under what circumstances can it possibly be necessary for a young person to need their own certificate, when the law

Some children develop more swiftly than others. Like so many things — training a dog springs to mind — some lessons are best not rushed. Chainsawing and driving are similarly perilous. Powerful equipment deserves careful, slow tutoring.

Sporting education

Richard Negus’s excellent articles charting his son’s sporting education reveal that there is so much more to shooting than safe gun handling. Richard shows that fieldcraft, natural history, patience and enthusiasm need to be fostered before any

“Some lessons are best not rushed. Powerful equipment deserves careful, slow tutoring”

seems to suit childish ways. There is a strong argument to capture their interest as early as possible.

Short-sighted

Keen shooting friends of mine recently fostered an 11-year-old. It was not until the shooting season began that they were told on no account must he be allowed to be involved. This was a decision that ultimately contributed to the breakdown of the placement. He loved being around the dogs, riding with the beaters, cracking his flag and whooping as a pheasant broke cover. What better way for a child to let off steam and learn the values of teamwork and self-control? In time, it could have led to safe gun handling and the great sense of

states that they must be supervised at all times anyway? The legislation acknowledges that a young person may “have the need to have an assembled shotgun in their possession on private land” for many legitimate purposes. Mike Briggs, a clay shooting friend of mine, remembers: “My grandfather encouraged me out after rabbits with a single-barrel .410 from a very young age. It was some of the happiest hunting I’ve ever enjoyed.” Many readers will have similar recollections: pest control is certainly a job that a child can handle. Additionally, large numbers of young people enjoy clay shooting and are competent in it. Just as young tennis players, golfers or cricketers learn their skills almost as soon as they can stand, good shooting should be taught early. Golf clubs and cricket bats wielded without care can be dangerous but, with supervision, children learn the joy of hand-eye coordination remarkably quickly. Swimming and riding a bike have their perils, but with care and sensible tutoring, children learn mastery very quickly. So what is the right age to start? At the clay ground, most fellow Shots suggest that this depends on the child in question. Jim Thompson, who has raised four shooting children, says he allowed them to be younger and younger when they began. Jim’s eldest did not learn to shoot until he was 14, but his youngest is already accounting for driven pheasants at the age of 11. “I must be getting soft in the head,” he says. “But as long as they are safe, keen, have the requisite manners and understand the sport, why not?”

lessons on pulling a trigger can even be considered. Many children — my own included — enjoy games of ‘man-hunt’ in the dark, practising their camouflage and concealment, their observation skills and their endurance. Other children love simply being with the dogs or out and about in the wild. Once this type of interest is fostered, then it’s probably time to introduce a bit of plinking with an air rifle in the garden. These types of lesson can be as enjoyable for a five-year-old as a 50-year-old. Like so many things, there is a huge level of judgement required and

A sensible, unhurried approach is essential when teaching a young person how to shoot

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Young Shots many steps on the path to becoming the complete sportsperson. I tell young parents that it’s very important to encourage natural history interests. My daughter and son have been engrossed in dormouse, turtle dove and blue butterfly projects. Pond digging can be every bit as exciting as clay shooting, especially when tadpoles start doing their thing. It’s never too early to sow the seeds, but worth also remembering that children can have heightened emotions around animals and it’s wise to go easy when they’re young. I remember my oldest godson picking up a mallard that his father had just accounted for on a fabulous duck drive. He held it, stroked it gently and whispered, “Sleep ducky”. Fortunately, he’s since gone on to become a very well-rounded and passionate fieldsportsman. The hunting instincts run deep and kick in very young, but can be confusing for the very youngest.

Father’s advice

How many other readers were made to learn A Father’s Advice before being allowed to pick up a gun? I suspect I will still be able to recite what one must ‘never, never’ do, even when old and senile. I often find myself

a valid barrier to entering the shooting world. Mark Hanbury Beaufoy’s 1902 poem is as relevant today as it was more than a century ago.

It ain’t broke

Fieldcraft needs to be taught before any lessons on pulling a trigger are considered

muttering it when a woodcock jinks low across the front of the line. Hold on Garnham… Stops and beaters, oft unseen; Lurk beneath some leafy screen; Calm and steady always be; Never shoot where you can’t see.

The legislation seems not to be ‘broke’ when it comes to the ages of applicants, so I am certainly not proposing that anyone should seek to fix it. According to the Home Office statistics on shotguns and firearms certificates for 2020, a total of 247 children aged 13 or under legally hold a certificate and 2,764 between the ages of 13 and 17. This seems a low number in a total of half a million licences (586,351). Against a UK population of more than 66million, it can be seen that shooters are fewer than 1% of that

“There are many steps on the path to becoming the complete sportsperson” One measure of being ready that seems still to be sensible is the ability to remember what to do “when a hedge or fence you cross”. Never can a truer word have been written than “All the pheasants ever bred, won’t repay for one man dead” and committing it to memory seems

A love of fieldsports and being in the great outdoors can be encouraged from an early age

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total. The vast majority — 95% — are male and 60% are over the age of 50. How good, then, that younger certificate holders are being encouraged. I would offer congratulations to the eminently sensible licensing officers who are supporting our next generation.

Sporting royalty

The A team of royal Guns

Diggory Hadoke reveals the eight royals he would include in an all-star shooting team

ALAMY / GETTY IMAGES

unmakers have long touted their connections to royalty. Even the names they give their guns borrow from it, with old catalogues chock-a-block with Royal, Regal and Crown models. Indeed, fieldsports have long been a passion of British monarchs and their families. The New Forest was planted in 1079 as a hunting reserve for William I, so the king could indulge in his favourite sport of hunting deer. Perhaps inadvertently, these royal hunting habits laid the foundations for the conservation of the environment at the expense of the needs of agriculture and human habitation. Ancient kings valued forests teeming with deer at a time when, if left unchecked, the old story of habitat loss and poaching could quite easily have sent the native deer species the same way as the lynx, boar and wolf, all of which

were extinct in mainland Britain by around 1700. Instead, they have maintained some fabulous habitat, which has provided hunting and shooting grounds for generations of royal sportsmen from William the Conqueror to William, our future King. In between, shootingobsessed monarchies the world over have been customers of our best gun and rifle makers, seeking the very finest sporting kit with which to engage their preferred quarry. If we were to construct a historic line of royal Guns for an all-star team, it might look like this. 1

Maharajah Duleep Singh and sons

The resident of Elveden on the Norfolk-Suffolk border, the last king of the Sikhs was brought to England as a 15-year-old. His sons Victor (pictured below, first on left) and Frederick were both fine Shots and took part in shooting the record bag of 10,807

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partridges and 5,771 pheasants at Highclere in 1895. The Maharajah himself held the record for shooting grouse over dogs at his Scottish estate Grandtully. The family all owned Purdeys, Prince Victor being gifted his pair of hammerguns at the age of 15. 2

The Maharajah of Patiala

Born in 1891 in the Punjab, the Maharajah of Patiala became a fierce supporter of the Raj and a great sportsman. He visited Britain to shoot grouse in Scotland

nd driven pheasants and artridges in Norfolk, as well s being a keen stalker, once rdering 250 rounds of .318 mmunition for a stag shooting oliday. He was described s “a rather quick Shot and herefore may require a larger umber of cartridges than is sual” by an agent ordering or him. His Westley Richards ill in 1925 was almost £6,000, evealing his passion for buying uns and shooting.

King Edward VII

ertie’ or ‘Tum Tum’ as he was riously called, Prince Albert dward was at the centre of the cial shooting scene during the eyday of the sport. He was an id sportsman who owned guns Westley Richards, Purdey and ephen Grant, among others d was a very keen, but not toprank Shot. However, his enthusiasm for the sport did a great deal to cement its popularity at the very highest levels of society. “You did indeed but pray don’t trouble yourself about it” was the withering remark he once made to a companion who suggested he may have shot some of the King’s birds at Sandringham. 4

tyle of shooting, holding his front rm straight down the barrel, hich may have helped him find ncomers and going away birds but s prone to impeding your swing o the right. King George was one f several top Shots of the age o forego the supposed benefits f hammerless guns when they merged, preferring to shoot his Purdey hammerguns until his death in 1936. He was also a keen big game hunter but only had one real taste, as part of a 1911 hunt organised by the Nepali Prime nister. The King alone shot 21 tigers and at least two rhino on that shikar, over the course of 10 days.

King George V

Edward VII’s son was a better shot than his father, once ranked in the top six in the country. He had a strange

King Edward VIII

King George’s eldest son inherited his father’s passion for the outdoors. As Prince Edward, he travelled all over the Empire and made the most of his sporting opportunities, notably in Nepal and India in 1921 and in East Africa in 1930. Having bagged numerous specimens of all the dangerous game and demonstrated a cool head and somewhat reckless nature, he was alarmed by the

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S ortin ro alt 6

widespread tourist slaughter of Africa’s game from vehicles and campaigned thereafter to control hunting better and preserve the great hunting areas for future generations. He once wrote in his journal that shooting an elephant “seems as unthinkable as to want to hurt an old gentleman from the alms house”. 6

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The Archduke’s presence on an English pheasant shoot once came close to averting World War I, when he was almost shot by accident. Like many European sportsmen, he frequented British gunmakers. Among his battery was a pair of Stephen Grant 16-bore hammer ejectors with, unusually, Jones under-lever operation. He was apparently an accomplished Shot. The story of his short-lived escape from death relates to an episode at Welbeck in December 1913, when one of his loaders fell over in the snow and discharged a gun, both barrels loosing their load within a few feet of the Archduke’s head. 7

Sure Shot’ asked for a volunteer to risk his life by putting a lighted cigarette in his mouth, which Annie would attempt to shoot out. The Kaiser put up his hand, lit a cigar, placed it in his mouth and Annie coolly blew the ash off with a Colt .45. After Germany started World War I, Annie Oakley wrote and

Kaiser Wilhelm II

A gifted Shot, Wilhelm (pictured above right, first on left) won prizes for his rifle shooting. A nephew of King Edward VII, he was an occasional, but unpopular, guest at Sandringham before World War I. The two men did not get along. However, his most notable exploit was as the target, rather than the shooter. In 1890, he was watching Annie Oakley in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show when ‘Little

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asked the Kaiser for a second shot. He did not reply. 8

The Duke of Sussex

Prince Harry formed a duo with his brother that his mother dubbed ‘the Killer Wales’, such was their love of shooting. Also a keen stalker, Harry owned a pair of Purdey stalking rifles, which he sold in 2019 in response to his wife’s disapproval of shooting. He has also missed recent grouse shoots and the traditional Boxing Day shoot at Sandringham. The current incarnation of Prince Harry might not take his place in the line, but five years ago he would have been a top performer. Newspapers once reported the exploits of kings and princes in the shooting field with admiration. Today, the press is overwhelmingly negative and aggressive in its attacks on the royals any time their shooting activities are mentioned or witnessed. The pressure on Prince George will be even greater unless he is afforded the protection from press intrusion his father and uncle were following the death of Princess Diana. Will the next generation of royalty be as wedded to fieldsports as previous generations? Only time will tell.

Creating a shoot

A shoot from scratch ANDY HOOK; CHRIS WARREN; DAVID TIPLING; CALLUM MCINERNEY-RILEY; DANNY MOORE; DUNCAN IRELAND

Even the most ragged and commercially unviable ground will have the potential for establishing a small shoot, as Mike Swan explains

any times in my role as a GWCT adviser, I have been asked about where to put a pheasant pen on a bare farm with perhaps just one small wood on the boundary. My response is that we need to think about the potential of the ground before we address that; there could be lots of other options that do not involve any pheasant pens. There is a little block of about 200 acres just over the hill in Wiltshire that is a typical example of the problem. It is basically a bare arable farm, running along a gentle valley, with a small spring-fed stream running through. There is hardly any woodland , just a small piece right on the eastern boundary, directly against a huge forest on the other side. There are some nice hedges though, with quite a few hedgerow trees, and the stream has a narrow

Digging a flightpond is a great way to add to the land’s shooting potential

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Creating a shoot strip of soggy pasture running alongside it at the northern end. I have known the place for many years, and even visited to advise the little fishing club that stocks the stream, but a new owner who took over a couple of years ago wondered about the shooting potential. When I went, there were already some wild pheasants about, so it was clear that there could at the very least be one for the pot. That said, there really was nowhere for a release pen. With all that woodland over the boundary, most of any release were bound to wander off. So what to do? First off, a modest hopper feeding programme and some spring predation control could easily help the few pheasants to become a few more. This would offer the owner the chance to take a friend hedgerow bashing several times a season, with every prospect of coming in with a couple of brace to share after a morning’s wonderful sport. The strip of soggy pasture had not been grazed for years, because it was too small to be economic in the world of modern farming. The once flower-rich pasture was turning rank, but the fences were still sound, so a summer cut at hay time, and grazing by one cow and a calf through late summer could be done. There might be no profit agriculturally, but in biodiversity terms there would be lots of benefit in the form of ragged robin and similar flowers, for the pollinators

Farmland birds are likely to increase from the diversity in cropping and winter food that cover offers

to enjoy. This recipe would be perfect for restoration of winter snipe habitat too, and what better way to add spice to an armed ramble?

Get to know your site

Longer-term, there could be much more to develop on that little patch of Wiltshire. Things such as using a central hedgerow as the spine of a new release wood, planting a cover crop and digging a flightpond near the stream all come to mind. But the key point is that you need to understand what you already have first. A site survey and, dare I say it, employing the services of the expert eye in the form of your local GWCT adviser is surely the place to start.

into a small snipe bog. You might even find that a sprinkle of barley in the blocked ditch attracts a duck or two for an impromptu evening flight. Clearly, the all-grass farm and the bare arable equivalent both have a relatively low immediate potential. But both can also be considered as a bare canvas, where the shoot design artist has free rein to create something new. If there is no significant existing structure, you are not bound by it, and you can pretty much put in what you like. Indeed the sky is probably the limit, though your budget, and the constraints of farm production are also likely to be factors to consider. Often, the first thought on a bare

“The best thing is that almost anything you do is likely to bring a biodiversity bonus”

Your local GWCT adviser can help you to maximise the potential of your existing land

Everywhere has potential, though a farm consisting entirely of improved grass, with drystone walls splitting it up, is perhaps the least promising. However, the truth is that even here there is bound to be something you can do. The very fact that it is all grass suggests thin soils, so there will surely be some rocky and weedy patches where a pheasant might lurk. Chances are there is also a wet spot or two where you can hope to kick up a snipe. The first stage is to develop this basic character and enjoy the adventure. Fencing that weedy patch might be all that is needed to allow a bit of rough cover to develop, while part blocking a ditch could turn a place that currently holds one snipe

space like this is woodland planting, but that needs careful consideration. If your 200 acres is part of a bigger piece of open country, you could easily be about to wreck a much bigger area by following the modern fashion of going for tree planting. What is more, you will have a while to wait before the trees grow into enough of a wood to hold much game. So in the case of the arable, how about planting some bits of cover crop first? If the ground will grow wheat or barley, it will surely grow some game cover, or even some wild bird seed mix as part of a Countryside Stewardship scheme, which brings the prospect of another income stream that compensates for lost

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Creating a shoot

An uneconomic strip of soggy pasture, once restored, could be a perfect winter habitat for snipe

farm production. A network of three or four such plots laid out across the ground, sited to fit in reasonably well with the farming, and taking advantage of any contours, could be the basis of a lovely little driven redleg shoot.

Specialist wildlife

Aside from the fact that this infrastructure can be used from the year it was first planted, it also leaves the open nature of the ground intact for the specialist wildlife that inhabits it. Farmland birds such as skylarks, corn buntings, yellowhammers, linnets and tree sparrows are likely to benefit from the increased diversity and winter food your cover offers. One of the great benefits of developing a shoot on a patch where

there was nothing before is that almost anything that you care to do is likely to bring a biodiversity bonus. Even the bare grass farm will be likely to be enhanced too. Cover crops are a bigger leap of faith here, because you will need to plough up some pasture, and probably invest in a livestock fence too. You will also need to ensure that you don’t destroy a bit of wild flower-rich permanent pasture. But if you can get this all right, you will bring a whole suite of wildlife that would not inhabit the grassland alone.

Game holding

Once the shoot is up and running, and you know your bits of cover are well sited, making them more permanent will add yet more value. Mixed

A network of wild bird seed plots could be the basis of a lovely little driven red-legged partridge shoot

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native hedges to shelter your plots, or even just some clumps of bushes and shrubs such as hawthorn and dogwood, will enhance game holding while adding another wildlife habitat. They will also help the shoot fit into its landscape, by softening the straight edges of the crops.

More woodland

It may well turn out that the right thing is to go progressively from cover plots to woods. If your patch sits in a reasonably wooded countryside, adding some more is just fine. Planting a bit at a time while still retaining some game crop reduces the impact of that moment when you cannot grow cover between the trees but the trees are not holding game yet. You may also want to think about a central home wood that is to become the future pheasant release site. Getting this in first, while having fun with redlegs till it grows up, is a great way for a shoot to evolve. Every patch is different and I am pleased to say that we shooters have different desires too. So getting expert help from the GWCT advisory service really is a great way to start. One of the things I have most enjoyed as one of the team is helping people with different aspirations over what initially seem like similar bits of ground. Doing things differently to suit this means more diversity in the conservation outcomes too.

Kennel Diary

Hunting

When you join a new hunt, learning the hounds’ names is but one of many vital tasks, says Harry Beeby

Learning how a new kennel works is always interesting. Every establishment has its own quirks and ways of working, whether it be finding the most efficient way of washing down first thing in the morning or getting the hang of how each door opens and in which direction. The little things might seem trivial but, when you work in a place day in day out, these

the summer is much easier on a bike that works, so I will be treating myself. Another piece of kit that is rarely in its first flush of youth at hunt kennels is the lawn mower. But I am happy to report we have a saddle full of gleaming machines ready to prepare the lawns for the puppy show and other hunt functions — as long as the whipper-in doesn’t mow over a manhole

“Kennel bikes are famously bad — if you have two inflated tyres you’re doing well” details are important. Modern hunt staff have many tasks to perform on a daily basis, so ensuring you can do them in the most efficient way saves you a lot of time, leaving more daylight hours for other jobs. One thing on my list is new kennel bikes for hound exercise.

Kennel kit

Kennel bicycles are notoriously bad, some with no brakes, some with no gears and, if you are very lucky, you’ll get one with neither. If you manage two inflated tyres, you are doing well. Pounding the lanes over

The Oakley hounds are in fantastic order and Harry Beeby cannot wait for the season to start

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cover, as they have a tendency to do from time to time. Once all is in hand and learned in kennels, it will be time to get out and learn the new country. Hundreds of farmers and landowners must be visited during the summer. To ensure the country is kept open and the hounds are welcomed on a hunting day takes a lot of work and plenty of tact and diplomacy on the part of the Masters. With modern agriculture, much attention must be paid to the wishes of each landowner and these relationships, built by the Masters, are extremely important to ensure that we have a country to hunt. Summer is the perfect time to put in new hunt jumps, gates or bridges to make the country more inviting and easier to cross. This not only benefits subscribers and members of the mounted field, but also to some extent the landowners themselves, especially where gates and bridges are concerned. The maintenance done during the summer will certainly pay off come the start of the season. The next few months will be a whirlwind of new faces, places and long days, but with the hope of a full uninterrupted season ahead of us and with the challenge of hunting a new pack of hounds in a new country. I cannot wait. Harry Beeby lives in County Durham, is a keen huntsman and a dedicated conservationist with a passion for country sports. TREVOR MEEKS

aving made the move south and taken up my role at the Oakley in Bedfordshire, the sharp learning curve has begun. When you are presented with a new pack of hounds and a new kennel, things can seem daunting. Hounds have to get used to you — which, I am happy to say, they have done very well — and you used to them. I managed to get a few days with the outgoing huntsman before he moved, so I could learn as many hounds’ names as possible. With both me and the whipper-in being new at the Oakley, there is no one left in the kennels for us to learn from over time. The last few names will have to be committed to memory from a list and the use of a microchip scanner. The hounds I am taking on are a huge credit to the departing huntsman. They are in fantastic order and very relaxed, which was evident the first time I walked them out on my own. They didn’t know me from Adam and yet were a delight from the start. This reflects well on the man who has been in charge of them, and I would like to thank him very much for all his assistance in the handover and wish him the best of luck in his new position.

Big game

A force for good Well-managed trophy hunting offers revenue and incentivises people to conserve Africa’s endangered wildlife, argues Marcus Janssen

GETTY IMAGES

hen I first moved to the UK from South Africa, I stuck some of my favourite photographs on the wall of my halls of residence bedroom to serve as reminders of the life I’d left behind. One of those photographs happened to be of a close friend and me with a dead Cape buffalo that an American client had hunted on safari with us. Looking back now, I can see just how naive I was. But that photograph was a reminder of some of the incredible experiences I’d had on safari, and of a very memorable hunt that had ended in success. I knew how much of a contributor to wildlife conservation regulated big game hunting is. And of all the wildlife conservationists I’d met and idolised growing up in southern Africa, most of them were pro-hunting, or recognised that hunting could be a force for good.

Even the late, great, Dr Ian Player, who masterminded Operation Rhino, a programme in the 1980s that brought the southern white rhino back from the brink of extinction, recognised the value in commercial hunting. “Hunting led to the increase from 437 rhino in 1953 to in excess of 18,000 in 2010,” he said in an interview in 2009. “For the loss of a few animals (for the purposes of trophy hunting), their overall numbers increased. Regrettably, this is a form of logic that is lost on most people.” And so, I was justifiably proud of that photograph on my bedroom wall. I had nothing to hide or be ashamed of. But it didn’t take me long to realise that my positive views on big game hunting weren’t shared by many of my fellow students. But what has really surprised me over the years is how many game shooters have an issue with trophy hunting. I find this

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counter-intuitive and, frankly, quite hypocritical, particularly from those who happily shoot reared pheasants and partridges that are driven over their heads.

Facts, not emotion

I have always argued that effective wildlife management and conservation, whether it’s in the UK, Africa or anywhere else, requires pragmatism. Emotion isn’t helpful when you’re making decisions about what is best for an ecosystem or threatened species — facts are. When you look at the cold, hard facts, it is clear that hunting plays a crucial role in the conservation and management of Africa’s wildlife in many remote areas. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, time and time again, in several African countries. And the reason why this isn’t widely known? Because tabloid headlines about cruel American

Big game dentists slaying anthropomorphised lions sell newspapers. The lazy, polarising narrative of ‘barbaric big white hunter vs poor, defenceless animal’ makes for sickeningly sensationalist stories, ones that are far easier to roll into 400 words of journalistic phlegm than the complex socio-economic challenges of protecting wildlife in poverty-stricken countries. Elephants and lions seem to be valued more highly than people by many Westerners who, having read a few half-truths on the BBC news app or Daily Mail website, feel qualified to offer their advice on how Africans should manage their natural resources, and are quick to condemn hunters caught up in the ensuing media storm to damnation. Of course, that emotionally charged rhetoric is trotted out by celebrities such as Ricky Gervais and Piers Morgan because it’s popular. Who wouldn’t side with Cecil when the only information you have is that some rich American paid to shoot him with a crossbow (which isn’t true)?

Brutal reality

As an aside, whenever I hear or read stories about how these animals probably suffer slow, painful, tragic deaths — which, of course, as any stalker knows, is nonsense — I can’t help but wonder how people think these animals’ lives would end if

A farmed white rhino has its horn trimmed — this will be sold in a bid to prevent poaching and conserve different species

they weren’t despatched by a rifle brandished by a hunting client, whose much-needed trophy fees will be fed back into the rural African economy and into this proven wildlife conservation model. I doubt many of them have witnessed the brutal reality of what happens to a lion when it no longer has the strength to fend for itself. I have, and it is horrific. I know which death I would choose. But this unpopular, unpalatable truth is more complicated and more nuanced, and requires a slightly deeper understanding of the complexities of wildlife and habitat management in Africa. In very simple terms, hunting can contribute towards maintaining wildlife populations and biodiversity by giving wild animals a value far greater

than that of their meat, particularly in areas that do not boast the densities of large ungulates or spectacular scenery required to attract tourists in sufficient numbers to make photographic safaris viable. Not all of sub-Saharan Africa looks like the Serengeti or Masai Mara. In fact, most of it doesn’t. But these lower-density wildlife areas are, collectively, just as important — if not more so — in ecological terms, as the pan handle in the Okavango Delta or the Ngorongoro Crater. And it is in these areas — both private and state-owned — where hunting can be the financial driver (or a major part of it) that gives local people the incentive to conserve wildlife rather than eat it or eradicate it to make way for livestock or crops that are

Game ranching offers a much higher return on investment than cattle

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Big game poorly suited to semi-arid climates and thin, sandy soils. In South Africa, hunting has done just that: on a typical, conventional grassland ranch, the return on investment from game ranching is several times higher than it is for cattle ranching. Wildlife industries now contribute more than 10 billion rand (over half a billion pounds) to South Africa’s GDP, and privately owned game reserves and ranches amount

Conversely, when this wildlife is no longer seen as a financial asset, the incentive to nurture it, manage it and sustain it is lost, and the consequences can be severe. After a trophy-hunting ban was implemented in Botswana, which is home to an estimated 130,000 elephants, in 2014 (which is now being lifted), safari operators who had managed hunting concessions in remote corners of Botswana for years, were forced to up sticks and leave

“As unpalatable as trophy hunting is to some, that is what it is going to take” to in excess of 20 million hectares, supporting more than 16 million head of game — 10 times as many as there are in Kruger National Park — making private land crucial to South Africa’s wildlife conservation efforts.

Key driver

Just as grouse moors and well-run sporting estates support myriad wildlife, so do these ranches and reserves. Thousands of other species benefit as monocultures or maize, sunflowers, sugarcane and citrus are turned back into native savanna, scrubland, woodland and grassland. Hunting is one of the key economic drivers for these wildlife industries. It provides people with the incentive to protect their wildlife, particularly species such as rhino and elephant, which are highly valued by the illegal wildlife trade.

behind the infrastructure, staff and land they had financed for many years. “Twenty elephants were hunted in Sankuyo (a 400,000-hectare hunting concession in northern Botswana) each year,” explains veteran professional hunter, wildlife artist and conservationist James Quin. “This fed 300 people, and additional meat was dried and sold in town. We (the hunting operators) also financed a medical clinic and school for the local community, and we employed 20 local people in camp. “When hunting was banned, the camp, the clinic and the school all went. We switched off our pumps and the waterholes dried up, resulting in a huge loss of wildlife. In addition, the local people still needed meat, so they resorted to poaching. They didn’t have the wherewithal to hunt elephant, so they snared the plains game. There

Trophy hunting plays a crucial role in the conservation and management of Africa’s wildlife

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were herds of 500 buffalo in that area; now you don’t even see an impala. It has been all been poached out.”

Poverty and poaching

“The human rural population is doubling every 20 years,” says veteran wildlife author Ron Thomson. “Twenty-five per cent of South Africa’s population is unemployed, and it is poverty that is driving the current poaching juggernaut. Today, the poaching problem is focused on the rhino — tomorrow, who knows what it will be. But today’s rhino poaching is just the beginning of a coming avalanche. With the kind of poverty-stricken human pressure that is still to come (even within our gazetted national parks), what chance has wildlife to survive the century?” This is the gritty, unpopular reality of 21st-century wildlife conservation in Africa. And at the heart of it is the same question: can we put our sentimentality aside for the greater good of our natural resources? Because, in my opinion, as unpalatable as trophy hunting may be to some, that is what it is going to take. I really do believe that if we allow our emotions to get in the way of finding and implementing the most practicable solutions to humanwildlife conflicts, much of Africa’s wildlife will, like the northern white rhino, be doomed.

Davy Thomas is a professional deerstalker and estate manager in the Highlands

Stalking Diary Hill foxes are ruthless killers but you have to admire their resilience — perhaps we have more to learn from this canny master of survival

The chief Maclain of the MacDonald clan, known as the ‘old fox’, was killed during the massacre of Glencoe in 1692

GETTY IMAGES

he shepherds, stalkers and gamekeepers of the Highlands have been focusing on fox control of late, in order to safeguard their stock and ultimately their livelihoods. However, the relationship between man and beast is not what you might expect in this area of Scotland. I recently confessed to my youngest son that the fox is among my three favourite animals. While a ruthless killer at times, the canny hill fox has made such a fool of me on so many occasions that I cannot bring myself to hate them. Quite the contrary, having spent years in their pursuit, my tendency is to admire them. My predecessor, old Alistair MacDonald of Glencoe, regularly used to call me at den time to see how we were getting on finding ‘her’ in the high corries. He was a highly respected stalker and shepherd, familiar with these hills and the rural Glencoe community. Alistair’s mind was sharp as a pin, thanks to his lifetime spent working these hills, and he would frequently say dogs ‘needed wings’ to gather on parts of the hill. Sadly, Alistair passed away in February, his unique knowledge of the glens disappearing forever.

Safe to say, I have met some pretty tough people in my life; Alistair was definitely among them. Stalking and shepherding were in his blood, stretching back way beyond the fateful night in 1692 when a rival clan fell upon his ancestors and were ordered to ‘put all to the sword under 70’. The slaughter is considered to be one of the greatest acts of treachery in Scottish history, and the clan chief Maclain, known as the ‘old fox’, was among those to succumb during the massacre. In more recent history, death-defying sheep rescues and epic deer extractions on the hill created a wealth of experience that laid the foundations for the first Civilian Mountain Rescue Team in Scotland.

Wild as the corries

Formed in 1962, when the late mountaineer Hamish MacInnes herded a select few burly shepherds and stalkers into the Clachaig Inn, the team utilised the skill set from people who were as wild as the corries in which they worked. I did not know Hamish well, but each time I talked with him it was evident that he was a man ahead of his time and his plan set out to assist the police in dealing with the

growing number of visitors to the hills, and the accidents that would inevitably happen. I accept the concept of change in some areas and, if feasible to do so, embrace it. At the same time, though, it is crucial that we hold dear our values and traditions based upon sound knowledge, and also learn from our mistakes. We owe it to the wildlife under our care to deliver sound management based upon fact. However, we need to pay heed to the people whose knowledge in their field was built upon experience and hard graft.

Footsteps of giants

We need to remember that sometimes we walk in the footsteps of giants. Messrs MacDonald and MacInnes will have a longer-lasting impact on rural Scotland than any vote-seeking politician and my tendency is to admire their work. The similarities between my countrymen and the canny hill fox don’t end there either. While other species come and go, the fox has remained resilient. In fact, through being so adaptable to ever-changing environments, they have become such a master of survival that their management is essential if we are to co-exist. Perhaps we have more to learn from them?

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 39

Catlow’s notebook

WITH LAURENCE CATLOW

LAURENCE CATLOW, A PASSIONATE SHOOTER AND ANGLER FOR MORE THAN 40 YEARS, HAS WRITTEN FIVE BOOKS ABOUT SPORT WITH ROD ANDGUN

The gift of spring The season’s first trout ignites every angler’s passion and serves as a reminder of even better times ahead

PAUL QUAGLIANA; ALAMY

remember hoping, in the concluding sentences of my previous article, that by the time you found yourself reading it I should have caught the first trout of the season and that for a time at least it would have made me feel young again (Catlow’s notebook, 21 April). Well, I managed one part of it. Something like a week before the article appeared, the first few trout of another season had indeed found their unwilling way into my net; in fact, a round dozen of them had done so, but the truth of the matter is that not a single one of them made me feel a year, a month or even a minute younger than I had been feeling before they came along. Instead of this they achieved something much more important, for singly and together they made me feel serenely content to be 71 and to be standing or sitting by the River Tees a mile or two above High Force with a trout or two in my bag and the hope in my heart of a few more still to come. It is a wonderful gift to have been born a fisher and the first few trout of another spring are among the

best blessings that this wonderful gift bestows. They tell a fisher so much; they tell him that there are still trout in his river, which is, of course, a comfort; they also tell him that he can still manage to catch a few of them, which is undoubtedly a relief; but most preciously of all they tell him that fishing and the trout it gives him are still to him all that they have always been: able to bring deep fulfilment, deep contentment and even deeper peace. It would be terrible The first few trout of the season make for a contented angler

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to find that you had just caught a trout and found with his catching that it no longer mattered; just as it would be terrible to pull down an exceptionally tall pheasant from the sky and then say to yourself, “So what?” It would be time to hang your rods in their rack and leave them there to rest in peace; it would be time to clean your gun for the last time and return it to its cabinet in permanent retirement, unless perhaps it would be better to sell your rods and guns

Catlow’s notebook

For Laurence, fishing in April is a prelude to the main event in the months to come

or even give them away to avoid the temptation of ever handling them again and so being reminded of all that they had once meant to you and all that you had now lost.

Exhilaration

These first trout of the season, anyway, have again confirmed that the whole business of fishing has as firm and welcome a hold on me as it ever had. It felt a rare privilege to be up high on the Tees in cold spring sunshine, among the curlew and lapwings, the snipe and redshank and sandpipers, revelling in the exhilaration of sport and in the life and beauty all round me, telling myself at the same time that there was almost six months of this stretching ahead, and that it would only get better. I told myself this because April fishing, especially in a spring as cold as this one, is really a prelude to the main performance in the months ahead. I also told myself that when rain at last put some water in our rivers it would surely bring me my first trout or two from the Wharfe, which would in turn bring even deeper fulfilment, deeper contentment and deeper peace than those trout from the Tees, because I have fished the Wharfe for more than 50 years and it is where my fisher’s heart truly belongs. Trout are not all that I have been catching. It is the time of year when I proclaim myself the songbirds’ friend as well as the patron and protector of all ground-nesting birds. These are titles that my keeper friends deserve

Ground-nesting birds, such as the curlew, as well as songbirds deserve protection from predators

much more than I, but I try to play my part by doing what I can for the curlew and warblers and robins and thrushes and all the birds that bring such beauty of sight and sound and movement to High Park. I also do what I can for my pheasants, trying to protect them from crows and magpies by reducing the number of roving eyes — and beaks — up there above them in the sky. My Larsen traps and I are doing our bit and the tally of trapped and despatched corvids is rising steadily.

Anyway, I like to end my monthly ramblings by looking forward to what I hope the next few weeks will bring, and I am, as you already know, hoping for those first trout from the Wharfe. There has at last been rain to refresh my favourite river and the next few days look warmer with southerly winds. That first trout from the Wharfe could even come tomorrow, which is the 10th of the month, because I shall probably head off for the river just as soon as

“I have fished the Wharfe for more than 50 years, it is where my fisher’s heart belongs” Catching trout, and taking an occasional brace for the table, breeds deep delight in me. Catching magpies and crows and then knocking them smartly on the head brings no delight; it brings satisfaction instead: in the thought that I might have saved a clutch of eggs or a family of hatchlings from the black beak of a corvid. In doing this it seems to me that I have done good rather than harm and I simply cannot understand why anyone who loves birds should condemn using Larsen traps to reduce predation by the crow tribe as heartless and cruel. Magpies and crows are thriving; lapwings and curlew are in steep decline; magpies and crows are undoubtedly one of the reasons for this decline. To my (possibly cruel and heartless) mind, that settles the argument and it distresses me to acknowledge that it will do nothing of the sort.

I have done the round of my traps. There are, of course, hopes other than fishing hopes for the rest of May.

Warmer days

One is that my Larsen traps will continue to promote the cause of waders, songbirds and pheasants by catching lots of magpies and crows, but my chief hope is undoubtedly that May’s last fortnight will forget about cold winds and frosty nights, deciding instead to bring warm days and gentle nights, with soft breezes from the south and with a few hours of quiet rain to encourage insect life and provide food for fledglings. And if all this happens perhaps those pheasant chicks that evade beaks and teeth will survive and prosper, and then comes June — who knows? Up on the moors the faces of my keeper friends may even be wearing smiles.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 41

TROUSER TEST

The best by a length A good pair of comfortable and waterproof stalking trousers can seriously improve your day out in the field, says Chris Dalton

s we move from spring into summer, the warmer weather beckons, but I’m in Scotland. With the next season just around the corner, I start to make some changes to the stalking kit that hangs in my utility room. Early morning starts are not conducive to domestic harmony, especially if I am thudding around at 4am looking through cupboards for my gear. Therefore a selection of any kit I might need is hanging or stored there with the added bonus that, as it is also the boiler room, anything damp or wet

1 Seeland Hawker Advance trousers

RRP £169.99 gb.seeland.com A Danish company Seeland first started making hunting clothing in 1996. While I have no previous personal experience of wearing the brand, a lot of my stalking clients do and they all speak highly of the overall quality and price. The first thing I like about these trousers is the feel of them — which is a strong start. The material is comfortable to the touch, slightly flexible and so I expect a good fit. They do not disappoint. The waistband is

Features include air-vent zippers and good-sized pockets

from the previous evening will be warm and dry. It occurs to me that one of the least written about, and possibly least thought about, items of stalking gear are trousers. When you think about it that seems strange — if you head out with the wrong coat or your gloves are a bit thin when you get to the ground, most of us have a change or spares in the truck. However, who carries a spare pair of trousers? Primarily, what I want from my stalking trousers is comfort and to achieve this they must fit well.

I don’t want them to be heavy and they should be breathable, along with having sufficient and sensibly located pockets. They must be silent and made of material strong enough to withstand the brambles and thorns I invariably have to negotiate on most of my stalks. Waterproofing also helps, as kneeling and crawling over wet grass — an early morning dew or the vagaries of the Scottish weather — will feature on most days. Finally, I’m not a massive fan of camo and much prefer one of the subtle shades of green, but that is just my choice.

in the right place and the seat doesn’t sag. The Seeland trousers ooze As well as sitting comfortably, the waistband quality and excel in the field offers ample and robust belt loops, which are ideal as I often carry a bone saw and knife in a leather sheath. The leg length is slightly longer than my ideal but in some respect this is beneficial, as I tuck trousers into the top of high-leg boots when I stalk and it has no effect when I wear wellies. They have a drawstring inside the bottom of the leg, allowing you to secure them over a boot if you prefer to wear them that way. On both sides of the legs are zips, allowing you to open air vents along the outside of the thigh if needed. When stalking they are breathable, comfortable and easily withstood the thorn brambles and willow scrub that I frequently encounter in south-west Scotland. I would describe them as medium weight so are ideal for the type of stalking I do. They have no back pockets, which I don’t use anyway, but two good-sized front pockets, both fitted with a handy zip. There are two further pockets, again with zips, but these are positioned below the front pockets and sit on top of the thigh. They

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uy with confidence

2 Ridgeline Stealth trousers

pocket ideal for the mobile. This is located to the side of the right leg, again fitted RRP £59.99 with a good zip for security. The leg length ridgelineclothing.co.uk was perfect for me and the bottom hem is Established in 1994, Ridgeline is a New slightly elasticated, good for either tucking Zealand company that has a large range into high-leg boots or worn on the outside. of outdoor clothing. Again, I am not familiar They are breathable and quick drying with its products, but it does have a following but these are definitely intended for among some of my regular stalking clients summer or warm-weather stalking. and feedback is generally good. Of all the trousers tested, these were The men’s Stealth trousers supplied to the lightest and ideal for an August foray me are described as being in ‘dirt camo’ after rutting roebuck or a warm summer but they are also available in olive and made stalk in woodland, but not for crawling of what is described as polyester/elastic through heather or wearing in cooler or stretch fabric. The fit was good and they wet conditions. are comfortable to wear because the waist I don’t think they would cope very well is slightly elasticated. The waistline was with a blackthorn thicket, but wear them secured with a single button and the belt as above and they will be more than loops are strong but I would prefer a few enough. Retailing at around £60, more. As I wear a knife on my belt, they are not expensive but they if there is a big gap between the are not the trousers I would belt loops the knife can slide choose. Essentially, I want back when sitting or crawling trousers that can cope with and become uncomfortable. any type of weather condition They come with two fairly and that I can wear most of the deep front pockets, which /10 year round. have zips, and a single thigh

are a good size for a mobile phone but the position is not ideal. When lying prone for a shot, or when crawling, I find they are in the way. Technical spec is described as having a Seetex membrane consisting of three layers: an outer layer designed to repel water, a central membrane with an inner lining, and a third layer intended to allow moisture to wick away from your body. It worked well, as I remained dry after crawling in to take a roebuck in wet grass early one morning. Overall I was very impressed and I would not hesitate to wear these for most of my stalking activities. I prefer plain green for all my stalking and these are just right for me. The pine green is a colour that blends in nicely and would be equally at home on the hill as in woodland stalking. I would also, with the exception of a high-seat session in mid-winter, wear them all year round. I like comfortable and breathable trousers that are not too heavy when I am stalking, irrespective of the temperature, as long as they are waterproof. These certainly ooze quality and are well worth a look.

9.5 /10

The Stealth trousers are ideal for an August foray but are perhaps not the most robust

3 Deerhunter Explore trousers

RRP £84.99 deerhunter.eu Deerhunter is a Danish company founded in 1927 as a family textiles business. In 1985itdecidedtobranchoutintospecialist huntingclothing.Iamveryfamiliar withthe brand; in fact my first hunting jacket was a Deerhunteranditsclothinghasbeenwell represented in my wardrobe ever since. The Explore trousers were supplied in an attractive shade of dark green and hadthefeelandlookofsuede.Quality is apparent as soon as you open the packaging. The feel is good and the fit is perfect, right down to the leg length. At mediumweight,theyaresilent withagood fitaroundthewaist,securedbyapressstud and a good number of strong belt loops. There is some elasticity in the waistband providing for adjustment if required. There are two front hip pockets, which are a nice size but with no zip. However, two further front lower pockets are the ideal size for a phone. They sit over the thigh and have zip fastenings. Again, I prefer these to be located slightly more to the side as they can hinder when crawling if you have your pockets full. There is an additional single rear pocket with zip on the right and a handy folding knife-sized side pocket on the left side of the leg. Leg length is good and the bottom of the trousers has a strap

The Deerhunter trousers tick almost all of Chris’s boxes

9 /10

and hook-and-loop fastener allowing you to secure them over the top of your boots. This does not stop you wearing them inside high-leg boots as I do, but it bunches a bit when you tuck them in. They are made of a Deer-Tex performance shell, a layered system claimed to provide a breathable, windproof and water-resistant finish. For me, they did just that. On test I was dry while crawling in wet grass and, though we had some chilly mornings in April, I was never cold. At under £85, these trousers tick almost all of my boxes and are ideal for most of my stalking activities throughout the year.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 43

Buy with confidence

TROUSER TEST

4 Kuiu Attack pants

RRP around £100 ($139) kuiu.com These trousers were supplied by Kuiu, an American company started in 2011 by a former American footballer who is also an avid hunter. His goal was to produce high-end, lightweight hunting clothing incorporating performance and technical fabrics. The kit oozes quality as it comes out of the package — a nice feel with a soft, slightly elasticated texture. I would assess them as medium weight and the fit, again, was excellent; nice around the waist and no sagging backside. They have a robust set of belt loops and plenty of them, fastening with a good strong button. The trouser legs fit well and are not baggy and the hem tucks nicely into my high-leg boot as they are slightly longer than my leg, which was fine. There are two hand pockets

and below those a further two ample thigh pockets, which have zips and a flap of material over the top that provides extra wet-weather protection to whatever is inside. They are slightly angled from vertical and perfect for the phone. I also found them slightly better positioned for me when crawling than some of the other trousers on test. You also have two rear pockets, again of a good size with a zip and the same over-the-top material protection as the thigh pockets. Technically, the material used is described as 3 DeFX, designed to give active insulation that allows moisture evaporation while engaged in strenuous activity. This is said to be achieved by using continuous insulating fibres, which eliminate the ends that normally poke through the fabric, allowing for a quiet, uncoated fabric that wicks effectively. Do they work? Yes they do, and very well. These Attack pants were probably

the most breathable of the medium-weight trousers on test. The brand has gained much favour among hunters in the US and New Zealand, particularly where the terrain makes for some serious altitude climbing and you need comfort and breathability. A nice touch is a zip-covered opening with an internal mesh liner located on the outside of each leg, allowing you to open this and let air in if you need to cool down — a clever addition. The material is strong and coped well with our local thorn thickets, as indeed it did with some wet weather. It also dries very quickly. These are ideal trousers for the hill. I was very impressed and overall they are excellent quality. The pricing is in US dollars so exchange rates come into play along with shipping costs, making these come in fairly pricey. Nevertheless, /10 a worthy investment.

8.5

IN CONCLUSION

The Kuiu Attack pants are the ideal trousers for the hill

44 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

In conclusion, all of these mediumweight trousers are excellent and I realise it is perhaps slightly unfair to compare the lightweight Ridgeline trousers with the others as they are really aimed towards hunters in warmer climes. Of the others, I would be happy to have any of them in my locker. Crucially, all the trousers on test offer what I demand in my stalking trousers: comfort, a good fit, a high degree of waterproofing, breathable, strength and not too heavy. I have found it very difficult to choose one out of these, but if pushed, I think it would have to be the Seeland Hawker Advanced trousers.

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Gundog training

Do I make myself clear? As we gear up for next season, we must ensure our dogs are ready and part of this is making sure they understand us, says Ellena Swift

ANDREW SYDENHAM

s my dogs are mainly retrievers, a lot of the exercises and training I do are aimed at retrieving. However, my dogs — like many — are used for beating and picking up. I will also use them when rough shooting, where they are both flushing and retrieving. I recently wrote about the all-round working dog, and though I discussed the best breeds, I did not cover how to train the all-round dog

(What makes the best all-rounder?, 21 April). For my team, it is important that each dog’s skills are kept sharp.

Mixed signals

One of the biggest mistakes people make when training their dogs for two jobs is not making it clear to the dog which commands mean what. They end up with a dog in the beating line that simply wants to sprint through the line to pick a bird, or a picking-up

dog that will not confidently hunt out of sight or cast in a true straight line over distance. It is mixed signals and unclear training that cause the dog to ‘misbehave’. However, a dog that cannot fulfil its role can be an embarrassment for the owner, a pain for the keeper and simply unhelpful for everyone else. Now we are slowly getting back to normal, it is the ideal time to ensure our dogs are up to scratch and ready for next season.

IN DETAIL

SEPARATING COMMANDS FIRST WE MUST separate our commands. One command should be for casting for a retrieve. Begin with basic marked retrieves, so it is clear the command means ‘run and retrieve’. You can slowly continue the retrieving drills (as per my other training articles) to develop control at distance, holding a good line and hunting for retrieves. The second command the dog must understand clearly is the hunting command. I teach this at distance and close quarters, and I expect the same behaviour to be shown whether the dog is 10 yards or 100 yards away. When I give my hunt command, I would like the dog to put its nose down and look for something close by. I expect it to hunt an area approximately 20 yards square around me. To start off, I sit the dog in front of me and put either a ball or something small on one side or the other. I signal the dog (using my hand) to put its head down and use its nose to find the object. As it hunts — no matter how briefly — I put my hunt command in. I use ‘hi lost’; however, others commonly used are ‘steady’ or ‘find it’. The start of these drills are very easy for the dog. It should not hunt for long

The hunting command should be mastered at long range as well as at close quarters

before finding something. You can slowly increase the difficulty and time it takes the dog to find. Finally, I start to walk as it is hunting. I get the dog hunting around me no matter where I move. In order to reward the dog for its hard work, I either pre-place something in the

area I am going to be hunting, or I have something in my pocket I can drop when the dog’s focus is not on me. If the latter is what you intend to do, make sure you always place the reward between you and the dog, so they are rewarded for staying and hunting close.

In association with Chudleys: over forty years of highly nutritious food for working dogs 48 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

www.chudleys.com IN DETAIL

SEPARATING COMMANDS (CONT.)

Ellena starts the drill by giving the dog a long marked retrieve along an even fence line — the fence will encourage the dog to stay in a straight line

If your dog is not motivated by normal tennis balls or small dummies, you can use rabbit-skin balls or even biscuits. The dog simply needs to understand that the hunt command means ‘look for something where you are’ and the cast means ‘run’. Lizzie, the flatcoat I am working with, is starting with the very basic drills described here and over the next six months will slowly increase in difficulty. If you feel your dog is proficient at both these commands, or certainly has the

“I expect the same behaviour whether the dog is 10 yards or 100 yards away” basic understanding, and will be used for beating and picking up this coming season (as my team will), there are some basic drills to practise. Start by giving the dog a long marked retrieve along a hedge or even fence line. The fence will encourage the dog to stay in a straight line and make it easier for it to remember.

Once picked, place another two dummies in the same area as the mark. Send again for one of them. The dog should be confident in running to that area and picking. The retrieve should be approximately 80 to 100 yards. Making sure the dog isn’t able to see, walk on the same line to roughly 15 yards and hide a small retrieve. Do the same at about 25 yards. Walk your dog to where you cast it for the retrieve. Instead of casting it, ask the dog to hunt. If the dog truly understands the command, it will not attempt to run in a straight line, but immediately put its nose down and begin looking for a retrieve close by. Walk up with your dog as it hunts, as if you were in a beating line. In not too very long, it should find its rewards. Repeat until it has found both items. Once both have been picked, sit the dog and cast it for the final long retrieve. If trained thoroughly, the dog will happily switch between each command. Instead of casting the dog, Ellena asks it to hunt. The dog immediately puts its nose down and begins looking for a retrieve close by

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 49

Gundog training

www.chudleys.com

IN DETAIL

KEEPA: STAYING ON TASK KEEPA IS EXPERIENCED in both of the exercises and will happily do the drill outlined on the previous page. Therefore, I would like to stretch him. For this I need either a willing volunteer or a dummy launcher (handheld or remote). A bang can make a dog ‘lose its head’ and forget its job, meaning many dogs will train well in these drills but as soon as the shooting starts, they have a strong association to run towards the gunline to get their retrieve. I set up my remote dummy launcher approximately 120 yards up ahead. It is loaded with four retrieves all aimed in different directions. I have already placed two items, quite well hidden, between me and the dummy launcher. We are in a relatively flat field, making it easy for both of us to see the launcher and for me to see the dog work. I find the drives where the dogs can see the Guns themselves and the birds dropping are the ones where they are most likely to run through the beating line rather than hunting for their handler. I launch one dummy with Keepa sitting at my side. I let him watch and mark it down. I then ask him to hunt. I guide him where I want him to hunt and encourage and praise him verbally as he continues to hunt without question. I allow him to find the first hidden disc dummy as he hunts. When he comes back with the disc, I line

As Keepa is hunting, Ellena launches two more dummies. She does not mind if he acknowledges the bangs by looking, or even stopping to mark their fall, as long as he does not try to run-in

him up and cast him for the first marked retrieve. Once he is back with that, I ask him to continue hunting. As Keepa is in motion, hunting, I launch the two. I do not mind if he acknowledges the bangs by looking, or even stopping to

The relatively flat field makes it easy for Keepa to see the launcher and for Ellena to watch him work

mark, as long as he does not attempt to run-in. If he makes the right decision and keeps hunting, I praise him verbally for the right decision. If he attempts to run-in, I do anything I can to distract him to get his focus back on me — for my dogs, this is saying ‘no’. Once the focus is back on me, I ask him to recall and start the drill again. Once he has found the second hidden retrieve, I line him up and cast him for the two delayed marked retrieves. If your dog truly understands both the casting and hunting commands, they should be content to do both. I hear many people say, “She is a picking-up dog, not a beating dog” and in view of that refuse to work their dog in the beating line. What the owner should have said is: “I have not trained my dog to work in the beating line.” If a handler chooses to do one discipline only that is absolutely fine. However, it should never be believed that a dog cannot do both simply because the handler does not know how to train both successfully alongside one another.

In association with Chudleys: over forty years of highly nutritious food for working dogs 50 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

Rewilding

The helping hand of man We mustn’t disregard the human role in rural places — species thrive due to our activities in the working countryside, says Jack Bell

RICHARD FAULKS; GEORGE GUNN; GETTY IMAGES; ALAMY

ewilding by definition is “the restoration of an area of land to its uncultivated state”. It is commonly used in reference to the reintroduction of wild animals that have been driven from their previously occupied habitat ranges. It is unsurprising that the topic has sparked debate and in turn created divisions between those living in the remote landscapes and the groups of pro-rewild environmentalists pushing for mass ecological landscape change. Trying to tackle the whole rewilding topic in one article is unrealistic, as it is a wide-ranging subject that covers ecology, land use, local community development, business, tourism and much more. In essence, I completely agree that we need to work hard to improve our natural environment. Our native broadleaf woodlands are disappearing at an accelerated rate, Scottish peatlands, which store 1.7billion tonnes of carbon, are degraded and some of our wildlife is facing localised extinction. The friction between the two sides of the rewilding debate is mostly due to a complete disregard of the human role in a functioning rural landscape and associated heritage, tradition and local economy. The whitewashing

“It is an attack on the traditions of Scottish rural life” of rural areas with the sole purpose of reverting large swathes of land to an uncultivated ‘natural’ state has been likened to a second attempt at the Highland Clearances, when wealthy landowners, often with little intrinsic connection to the local area, forced local communities from the landscape to make way for more profitable and fashionable commercial trends.

Restoring peatland would help reduce emissions and localised extinctions

It isn’t hard to see why these conclusions can be drawn. An online search of “Scotland rewilding” reveals endless articles describing Scotland as a “denuded landscape”, with a “loss of identity and autonomy”, which has “little left ecologically”. These articles are distasteful attacks on the traditions and heritage of Scottish rural life made under the guise of environmental improvement. They are highly offensive to those who have lived in and worked these lands for generations.

Moulding the landscape

There has been a continuous human presence in the British Isles for around 12,000 years. Prior to this, human occupation was brief and sporadic. Humans have always been by nature environment adaptors; we mould our landscape to best suit our needs — this is a fact that we cannot argue against and is sadly often to our detriment. It is an interesting point that the diehard rewilding movement wants to transform remote rural areas back to uncultivated land not disturbed by large-scale human activity. This is in contrast to various international policies. For example, the United Nations’ Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (1992) states in Principle 10 that

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 51

Rewilding “environmental issues are best handled with the participation of all concerned citizens”. If this recommendation is followed and all stakeholders are to be consulted — and listened to — it is likely that the rights of the local community to be present in the area and to be part of a functioning working rural landscape will be recognised. Policy will very likely always lean towards integrated change rather than a blanket reversion to an uncultivated landscape, and there is now a growing movement for a more proactive multistakeholder approach to improving our natural environment. One of the biggest questions facing any party interested in conservation is, which species are of most concern? This question is answered in the paper Birds of Conservation Concern 4: the Red List for Birds published in the British Birds journal (2015). The findings of the paper are approved by many partner wildlife organisations, including the RSPB, GWCT and British Trust for Ornithology.

Worryingly, the largest percentage of red-list species are farmland birds such as the skylark, fieldfare and yellow wagtail, which tells a story in itself. The list also includes many upland species and three out of four of the UK’s native gamebirds. Conservation work must be carried out to slow down and, where possible, reverse these population declines. If an integrated approach towards human pressure and biological conservation gain is to be taken, how far back in time should we be looking for answers regarding the starting point for a harmonised human and wildlife landscape?

Priority species

The grey partridge is a UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority bird species and has faced a population decline of 83% since the 1960s. A ground-nesting species, the grey partridge thrived throughout the 18th and 19th centuries due to the numerous small-scale, hedge-enclosed fields and paddocks in combination with widespread pest

Black grouse have been severely affected by a change in habitat

A rewilding movement that ignores the role of farmers, keepers and shoots risks further decreases in certain aspects of UK ecology

52 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

The much-loved grey partridge has faced a population decline of 83% since the 1960s

control, which boosted numbers. This made them the most popular gamebird of the last century. The severe decline of the grey partridge in the 1950s can be attributed to the introduction of herbicides and insecticides. The drop in insect numbers, combined with the enlarging of fields by removing boundaries and field margin cover, destroyed nesting habitat, leading to successive population declines that continue today. Another gamebird severely affected by a change in habitat is the black grouse. Black grouse have been decreasing across their entire European range over the past 100 years and now have a population of 4,850 lekking males in the UK. In Scotland during the 1950s, there was a noted increase in numbers, coinciding with a push for commercial forestry planting, which created ample habitat for the early woodland succession species. These forestry areas have matured and the species’ range has become fragmented. The tree canopy has closed,

Rewilding causing no suitable understory habitat and this is compounded by an increased predation presence.

Mosaic habitat

The fragmentation and adaption of suitable habitat is very likely the number one factor leading to severe population declines in black grouse. An intact mosaic habitat is needed to fully support the species through its various life stages, including young woodland, heathland, bogs and flushes. Black grouse once thrived on small-scale, non-intensive agricultural areas where pest control was carried out, resulting in related improvements in nesting success. A bird often labelled as the most important species of UK conservation concern is the curlew, which has been in decline since 1970. The UK holds a breeding population of 66,000 pairs, a decrease of around 65% that is mostly attributed to increased predation and a movement towards more intensive agriculture systems. Global warming combined with agricultural innovation has led to a shift in our annual farming calendar.

The combination of sustainable agriculture, pest control and habitat creation is perfect for wildlife

insect abundance, making it harder for curlew to support their young. The most ecologically diverse sites are those which are sensitively managed for the integrated interests of agriculture, biodiversity and other land uses. A Scottish Borders farm I have recently surveyed is renowned for producing quality grass-fed Scotch beef on the edge of a managed moorland. The benefits of sustainable agricultural practices and the correct

“Species are thriving in a harmonised landscape that is supported by people” Crops are now harvested earlier and more frequently due to a need to utilise land in an efficient manner for commercially viable food production. This has resulted in a notable decrease in suitable habitat for successful nesting. The resulting uniform landscape, with large monoculture grazing or arable fields, has affected

grazing pressure, combined with the pest control and habitat creation of the neighbouring shoot, create a rural setting teeming with breeding bird species, including lapwing, curlew and goshawk. These species are thriving in a harmonised landscape that is supported by — and in turn supports — people.

Consumers want cheap food so a radical move towards rewilding rural Britain is unlikely to happen in the near future. However, there is going to be a change in the way we manage our countryside. Humans have adapted our landscapes for millennia to create places that are sustainable and allow communities to thrive. If a mass rewilding movement was to disregard the human role in rural places, we are likely to see further decreases in certain aspects of UK ecology. Conservation objectives need to be defined — and if possible universally accepted — before declines in threatened species can be reversed. Historically, many red-list species have thrived due to human activities in the working landscape. So we should look back at our past habitats, landscapes and, where appropriate, their management to achieve integrated conservation and hopefully some sustainable ecological and environmental gain.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 53

Gundogs

Ticking time bomb

DAVID TOMLINSON; GETTY

We’re all aware of the dangers of ticks, but the treatments for these hated parasites can be even more problematic, says David Tomlinson THERE ARE FEW creatures I dislike more than ticks, which seem to have no redeeming features. I’m fortunate to live in a part of the country where ticks aren’t a major problem, but the dogs still pick up a few during the year. My worst experience with ticks has been on Exmoor: after one walk, I once removed more than 40 ticks from my dogs. I was staying at a field centre at the time. One of the centre’s tutors, an environmentalist and vegan, suggested I should release the ticks back on the moor. I declined to do so. Over the years, I’ve tried a variety of treatments to keep my dogs tick-free, with various degrees of effectiveness and mostly at considerable expense. This year, however, I’ve given up on the insecticides and switched to a natural herbal remedy called Ticked Off. Its ingredients include garlic, echinacea, glycerin and apple cider vinegar. I’m adding a couple of drops (2ml) a day to the dogs’ dinners, and

will be continuing to do so throughout the tick season. It may not work, but one thing I can be confident about is that it won’t do the dogs, or the environment, any harm. For years, I used a spot-on tickprevention treatment, the sort you apply to the dog’s withers. I presume the chemical is applied there because it’s the one place where a dog can’t lick it off. This matters, for these

“Fipronil is known to be toxic to insects, including bees” spot-on treatments are nasty. The most commonly used ingredients in veterinary flea products are fipronil and the neonicotinoid imidacloprid. Both are banned for agricultural use owing to their adverse environmental effects. However, there has been little environmental risk assessment of their use on domestic cats and

dogs. This is apparently because it’s assumed there are likely to be fewer environmental impacts due to the small amount of product used.

Contamination

Research by the University of Sussex revealed widespread contamination of English rivers with these two neurotoxic pesticides, and the concentrations found often far exceeded accepted safe limits (News, 25 November 2020). The authors analysed data gathered by the Environment Agency in English waterways between 2016-18. They found that fipronil was detected in 98% of freshwater samples, and imidacloprid in 66%. According to co-author Rosemary Perkins, a PhD student at Sussex and a qualified vet, “The use of pet parasite products has increased over the years, with millions of dogs and cats now being routinely treated multiple times per year. Fipronil is one of the most commonly used flea products, and recent studies have shown that

In association with Chudleys: over forty years of highly nutritious food for working dogs 54 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

www.chudleys.com DAVID’S VIEWPOINT

DON’T GET HISS-TERICAL

Exercise caution but not panic over snake bites

was taken aback to read a recent newspaper report of dogs being bitten by adders, as if this was something unusual. It’s not, of course: according to my research, there are around 100 cases a year of dogs being bitten by adders in Britain, though I suspect this figure is no more than an educated guess. What is surprising is that more dogs aren’t bitten, for adders are widespread in Britain, occurring north to Caithness and south to Cornwall. Adders are shy creatures that do their best to avoid us, and it’s remarkable how few I’ve seen in a lifetime spent in the countryside. I remember as a teenager

encountering my first adder at Folkestone Warren in Kent. As soon as it realised it was being watched, it slipped away. I have travelled in many countries where snakes are much more numerous than they are here, but rarely have I seen many. In Europe, the most venomous snake I’ve seen in the wild is Lataste’s viper, in the Iberian Peninsula, while I saw my first black mamba while walking in Okavango. A few minutes later, I walked into a small herd of less-than-friendly elephants. The mamba was decidedly less scary. I’ve travelled widely in Australia, but without any memorable snake encounters. This seems somewhat surprising, as Australia has no fewer than 110 terrestrial species and is the only country with more venomous than non-venomous snakes. It also has some of the deadliest snakes in the world. The most poisonous of the lot, the inland taipan, is shy and retreats at the first sign of any danger. The snake

Fipronil was detected in 98% of freshwater samples taken from British rivers

it degrades to compounds that are more persistent in the environment, and more toxic to most insects, than fipronil itself. Our results, showing that fipronil and its toxic breakdown products are present in nearly all of the freshwater samples tested, are extremely concerning.” The research was funded by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate. It found there were 66 licensed veterinary products containing fipronil in the UK, and 21 containing imidacloprid, either alone or in combination with other parasiticides. These include spot-on solutions, topical sprays and collars impregnated with the active ingredient. Some of these can be purchased only with a vet’s

prescription, while others can be bought freely from pet shops, pharmacies and online. I’d never heard of fipronil, which was banned for agricultural use in 2017. However, online research revealed it is the main active ingredient of Frontline, as well as TopSpot, Fiproguard, Flevox and PetArmor. Not a great deal of research has been undertaken on its impact on wildlife, but it is known to be toxic to insects (including bees), crustaceans and fish, as well as rabbits. I suspect the majority of gundog owners have, like me, used one of these spot-on products on their dog. Most gundogs like swimming, so you don’t have to be clever to see how fipronil can get into our waterways.

The adder is Britain’s only venomous snake

that causes the greatest number of human and canine deaths is the eastern brown. An estimated 60,000 dogs are bitten by snakes in Australia every year, with about 15,000 thought to die as a result. In comparison, we don’t really have a lot to be worried about. Even so, it’s wise to be aware of the threat of adders, especially when exercising in prime adder habitat, such as dunes, heaths and coastal paths. Email: dhtomlinson@btinternet.com However, the Sussex research found the highest levels of pollution were immediately downstream of wastewater treatment works. This suggests washing the bedding of treated pets could be a source of pollution, as the wastewater from the wash travels via household drains to the water treatment works. One comment from Prof Dave Goulson, co-author of the Sussex research, I found particularly concerning was that one imidacloprid-based flea treatment for a medium-sized dog contains enough pesticide to kill 60 million bees.

Serious issues

A couple of years ago, I gave up using Frontline, as I found it was becoming increasingly ineffective. On my vet’s advice, I switched to chewable Bravecto tablets. It’s expensive, but proved to be effective. Before the product was marketed, it was tested on beagles, none of which reacted to it. However, rarely have I read so many damning online reviews of a product as I have of Bravecto, with many owners reporting serious neurological issues. Its main ingredient is fluralaner, a novel systemic insecticide. I wouldn’t want to chew a Bravecto tablet, and my dogs will never be expected to do so again, either.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 55

ATING OUR BEST WRITE R B E RS EL

From heron to badger Berkshire offers an enormous number of opportunities for the all-round sportsmen, as well as myriad superb country estates, says East Sussex “That the heron does take fish, and fish that give sport to the angler, cannot be denied”

GETTY IMAGES

here are few parts of England that furnish such opportunities to the allround sportsman as the county of Berkshire. Its proximity to the metropolis and the ease with which it can be reached by the busy man from town, who can only take a day off now and again, but who nevertheless can afford to pay something above the ordinary figure for his sport, has so enhanced the value of its shooting of recent years that, as a happy hunting ground to the shooting man possessed only of a slender means, it has become more or less as forbidden ground. There are out-of-the-way parts, however, where the man who does not mind six or seven miles in a dog cart along a bad road on a frosty morning after a 6am breakfast can get

fair sport at a reasonable figure. To the hunting man, and particularly to the angler, Berkshire holds a number of attractions not often to be met within such accessible districts. To the naturalist there is no county in which a holiday can be more enjoyably spent.

Encouragement

The chief interest of the county being agricultural, partridges and pheasants are given every encouragement. The extensive woods of oak and beech that are frequent in the eastern portion of the county prove especially attractive to the latter. For its size, Berkshire contains an extraordinary number of country seats, one of the most beautiful being Englefield Park, through which the writer in days gone by has had many a delightful ramble. At Englefield

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there is a heronry of considerable size and long-standing. Few birds are more interesting to observe or more curious in their habits than the heron. They seem equally at home and as happy standing in the water or upon dry land, perched upon the topmost twig of some lofty tree, swaying backwards and forwards in the wind, or standing motionless and sedate upon the riverbank lost in contemplation. They nest anywhere and, being wise birds, have learned that a mass of twigs is not always strong enough to resist the force of a south-west gale. There are numerous instances upon record of herons’ nests constructed wholly or in part of wire — preferably of the kind that comes from around the necks of soda-water bottles, for the heron is instilled with teetotal instincts. The bird is an embodiment of all the virtues, except so far as his occasional desire to investigate the gastronomical possibilities of a fine, young Lambourn or Kennet trout may lead him astray. That he does take fish, and fish that give sport to the angler, cannot be denied. But it has been urged in his favour that he is not so expert a fisherman as he has been credited with being, and that he takes only the weakly and diseased fish in the stream. These, as every angler will admit, are as useful, and more so, in the gullet of ‘nature’s fisherman’

Vintage Times

“There are those who contend that there is not much, if any, resemblance to a horse”

than in the stream or creel of the man upon the bank. There is no subject so difficult of satisfactory investigation as the question, continually under discussion, as to what is the relative amount of good and harm done by various birds and animals — good, that is, from man’s point of view only. By the introduction of the pheasant to this country, many birds and beasts, now regarded as incorrigible rogues and vermin against whom the strictest measures should be taken to bring about, as far as is possible, their utter extermination, have been placed in an altogether false position. That the pheasant is a terrible fool, except when you happen to be in pursuit of a five-year-old cock in January, everyone will admit. There is no bird, perhaps, so utterly careless in the charge of her young, and so absolutely indifferent as to the various evil fates that may befall them, as the hen pheasant.

Sanctum

Besides the herons, Englefield Park holds many a curious and interesting aquatic or semi-aquatic bird. It is, or was a few years ago, a regular sanctum for all kinds of fowl, indigenous and foreign. The more of such places that there are scattered about the kingdom, the better for their owners and for the public at large. Indeed, if it were not for some of the carefully preserved areas, where never a gun is fired, except in the destruction of ‘undesirables’, the natural fauna of many districts, including those varieties which yield sport to the gunner, would have long ago ceased to exist. Berkshire contains, besides the demesne of Royal Windsor, at least a dozen other country seats. Though it is far from the desire of

any true sportsman that his shooting should depend mainly, without any corresponding effort or expenditure upon his part, upon such places for the provision of his sport, it must be admitted that such well-preserved portions of any county are the chief mainstay of the sporting capabilities of that county. In addition to far-famed Windsor, Berkshire can boast of more than one other forest which, apart from the inevitable ravages of time, stands today in its original aspect, having

be felt at the extinction of any of our native species, has befallen him in not a few parts of the country. The eastern division of the county has the reputation of being less fertile than the western portion, but, nevertheless, the farmers in the former part know how to farm as well as their more fortunate companions in the west. A large part of east Berkshire is flat and somewhat uninteresting, but it is extensively wooded in some other areas, notably around the Windsor locality. The highest portion

“There is no bird so utterly careless in the charge of her young as the hen pheasant” been little disturbed or denuded of its finest features by the hand of man. This state of things, so far as woodland game is concerned, must always be a most favourable one for any county. At Ashampstead, not far from the delightful district around Bradfield, of Greek play fame, we find ideal surroundings for every denizen of the woods. Even badgers are not yet extinct, and here we come at once to an animal concerning that whole volumes have been written to prove that he is the most destructive of all four-legged creatures — and the exact opposite. Whatever may be his merits or demerits, he provides sport for such as take pleasure in the somewhat laborious and tedious work of badger-digging. As such it would be a matter for the sincerest regret if his numbers should be reduced to a point of practical extermination — a fate which, I note with regret that must

of this division is Bagshot Heath, which, though nearly 500ft above sea level, has not much more than half the elevation of White Horse Hill, the highest point in West Berkshire. Dairy farming is extensively carried on in the eastern district and, in consequence, much of the land is lost to the interests of the shooting man. In the western part, however, sheep farming is the chief occupation of the agricultural tenants, and the cultivation is eminently of the ‘high’ order. It is well watered and where partridges do remarkably well, some very heavy bags being recorded from this district every season. Hares, too, are plentiful, the downs in the Isley neighbourhood producing some specimens as large and heavy as those of Hampshire and Sussex.

“Partridges do very well, with some heavy bags being recorded from the district every season”

This article was first published in the 18 May 1901 issue of Shooting Times.

Chalk figure

Upon White Horse Hill, near Wantage, there is a cut upon the face of the hill in the white chalk formation a figure of an animal said to be a horse, but upon this point there appears to be some uncertainty among those who have seen it. It is supposed to commemorate a victory over the Danes in the year AD 872. There are those who contend that there is not much resemblance, if any, to a horse, but that it is more like a greyhound. The similarity between the two animals is not very apparent but, if it be meant to be the representation of a greyhound, perhaps there is some connection between it and the longlegged hares of the Berkshire downs.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 57

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Game Cookery

Venison

British venison is far superior to imported meat and we should be eating more of it, says José Souto, who offers a delicious take on barbecued ribs

ritish venison is some of the most ethical, flavoursome and healthy meat in the UK. We have six species of deer and they are all so different that it begs the question, why do we still import venison? Just before COVID-19 hit, the price of venison was dropping. We are told this was due to imports from Spain and New Zealand. The quality of the driven shot venison from Spain does not come close to the quality of our British venison. Ask any Spanish chef how to cook it and he or she will say to stew it, because it’s tough and has a taint from the adrenalin coursing through the animal’s body as it runs and is shot on the hoof. This meat needs red wine and marinades to tenderise and mask the taint, meaning it has been historically pigeonholed as a secondclass meat.

A few years ago, I went to southern Spain to do some demos on deer butchery and preparation of carcasses. The estate I was on did a lot of stalked venison and had tried to set itself apart by the quality of its non-driven product. They invited a few Michelin-starred chefs to sample their product and sent out loin and haunch joints. However, they all did the same thing — marinating it in a wine or acidic marinade that turned these tender cuts to mush.

Assumption They assumed that all venison was tough, because this was what they had learned. They did not understand how different nondriven venison is and how good it can be. We have fallen into the same trap in the UK. We do not realise how lucky we are to have such good venison on our doorstep, and we should all be demanding that our

supermarkets use British venison instead of the foreign imports. In this era, when we all aspire to eat local, eat well and ethically, let’s practise what we preach. The supermarkets are led by what their customers want and reflect our consciences when it comes to what fish we eat and how our meat is reared, so they should stock our venison. We need to change their mind. I also implore stalkers to encourage someone who has never tried venison. If they say they don’t like it because they think it’s strong, tough or dry, you can help to dispel the misconception they have of this most wonderful meat. It is down to us to help our venison market to grow. This recipe is a take on a barbecued pork rib recipe that works really well with venison, and uses a cut that is underutilised and more often than not used in burgers.

GLAZED VENISON RIBS

Ingredients 2 VENISON BREASTS PREPARED FOR BARBECUE 600ML TOMATO KETCHUP 200ML DARK SOY SAUCE 250ML HONEY 15G SMOKED PAPRIKA 5 CLOVES OF GARLIC, FINELY CHOPPED 500ML CHICKEN STOCK

THE METHOD

Serves 5

Place all the ingredients in a bowl, apart from the chicken stock, and mix well to make the BBQ marinade.

2 3

Using a pastry brush, paint the BBQ sauce all over the ribs on both sides.

Take a clean bin bag, large enough to fit in all the ribs, and fold over the opening of the bag so that you can see the h b bottom.

ANDREW SYDENHAM; GETTY IMAGES

P Place the ribs in the bag and pour over the rest of the marinade, wash o yourr hands and then unfold the end of the b bag and tie a knot in it. Leave ribs to marinate overnight in the fridge. You can also vacuum-pack the ribs Y to leave overnight. T The following day, place the ribs in n an ovenproof pan large enough to tak ke them all lying down.

Tip the marinade into a separate bowl, add the stock, mix well and pour over the ribs, ensuring they are well covered in liquid. Then bring to the boil on the stove. Transfer to the oven and cook at 160°C for 1¾ to 2½ hours or until the meat is tender. If you have a water bath, place the vacuum-packed ribs in the water bath at 80°C for at least four hours. Once the ribs are cooked, remove from the bag, add the chicken stock and follow the rest of the recipe.

Remove the ribs from the sauce and allow to cool. Meanwhile, pass the sauce and allow it to reduce to a thick coating consistency.

Once the ribs are cold, cut into three-bone portions, then dip or coat with sauce before placing in the oven or on the BBQ to reheat, ensuring the sauce glazes the ribs.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 59

SPORTING ANSWERS The experts THE ULTIMATE SHOOTING QUIZ TEAM 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 Times rifle 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

MAT MANNING; HENRY HUNT; CRAIG MCCANN; STEVE TAYLOR; PAUL QUAGLIANA; BRUCE POTTS; NICK RIDLEY; ALAMY; GETTY IMAGES

Veterinary surgeon with a special interest in gundogs

Use a litter grabber to pick up shot rats and dispose of them where advised by the landowner

Disposing of those dirty rats AIRGUNNING

I am about to start shooting rats with my air rifle on a local farm where I help with pest control. What is the best thing to do with shot rats at the end of each session?

TOM PAYNE Professional shooting instructor and avid pigeon shooter ELLENA SWIFT

The correct disposal of shot rats is important because corpses that are left to rot can pose as much of a disease hazard as live rats. As for where to get rid

Award-winning gundog trainer and canine behaviour specialist TIMMADDAMS Former head chef at River CottageandrunsashootinDevon SIMON WHITEHEAD Author, professional ferreter and rabbit controller IAIN WATSON Keen stalker and senior CIC international trophy judge

Contact the team Email: stanswers@futurenet.com By post: Shooting Times, Future, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP

of them, ask the landowner and they will no doubt be able to point you in the right direction — most likely towards a slurry pit or fire site. Rats can carry some nasty diseases, so be careful when collecting them for disposal. Always wear gloves and use a shovel or litter grabber and never be tempted to pick up any shot rats with your hands because you will run the risk of being bitten by a wounded one. MM

SPORTING EPHEMERA OF THE WEEK

ABSORBO In the 1930s, efforts were still being made to create products that best cleaned and protected gun barrels and metal finishes from the residue of nitro powder discharge. But the lubricating oils then in use were not sufficient to preserve barrels against the corrosive action of nitro powders and the primers used with them. Absorbo was a cleaner and preserver sold by Westley Richards for 1s 10d per small tin, which was billed as a wonder product. You applied it using

60 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

a cleaning rod and wool mop. It was claimed that a coat of Absorbo would render inert any residue or fouling in the bores and prevent rusting. DH

Expert tips and advice

What happened to lime? GAMEKEEPING

Plants, flowers and fungi of Great Britain at a glance

Liming rearing and release pens to keep diseases at bay was once quite common. Did it work, and if it did, why don’t people do it any more? Liming pens used to be quite common. It reduced disease and worm problems to a degree, but it wasn’t fail-safe. You only had to miss a small patch of ground and whatever you were trying to get rid of would stay there and infect the next lot of birds. There were also health and safety issues relating to the spreading of lime by hand, and problems with it adversely affecting native flora and fauna. It has also fallen out of use. This is because modern keepers have bigger pens, use modern rearing methods and have a better understanding of the importance of stocking densities, the transmission of diseases and infections, and the spreading of worms. LB

Latin name: Convallaria majalis Common name: May, lily, our lady’s tears, conval lily, liriconfancy, May bells, mayflower, mugget, word lily

Liming pens used to be fairly common, but today’s keepers use modern rearing methods

Deer grazing damage DEER

The number of Chinese water deer is steadily increasing in my area. What damage do they do to crops, trees and wild plants? Even though Chinese water deer are increasing in England, they have tended to be regarded as relatively benign in farming, forestry and conservation terms. However, deer cannot survive on thin air: they must eat, so there will inevitably be an impact on crops, trees and ground flora.

Native Britain

In a long-term study in Woodwalton Fen, Cambridgeshire, water deer were found to browse regenerating coppice of palatable tree species, such as sallow, to a detrimental degree, and there are also concerns about their potential to damage scarce flora. Where large concentrations of these deer exist, as in some parts of Norfolk, there will be crop damage through grazing. Such damage by water deer has also recently escalated in their native range in South Korea. The impact on biodiversity, though, is probably modest in comparison to other species. GD

Chinese water deer can cause damage to crops and forestry

How to spot it and where to find it: It is perhaps one of our most recognisable, and most loved, woodland plants; its nodding heads of bell-like flowers and sweet scent are known to us all. The flowers tend to appear on one side of a spike that emerges from attractive emeraldgreen leaves. It likes chalky soils and dry, shady woodlands. Interesting facts: If you do spot lily of the valley while out walking, you are probably in an ancient woodland, a rare and special habitat. And you may pick up its fragrance before you actually see it. The flower is used in perfumery and by florists. Its flowers are thought to bring luck in love, so it is often seen in wedding bouquets — Kate Middleton’s understated bouquet contained lily of the valley, as did Meghan Markle’s and the Duchess of Cornwall’s. The botanical name comes from the Latin words for ‘valley’, convallis, and majalis, which means ‘coming from May’. However, it is not a lily, nor a member of the lily family, but is related to asparagus. The flowers have biblical connections as they were said to bloom for the first time where Eve’s tears fell as she left the Garden of Eden. In medicine, it was used to treat heart problems, but it can be toxic and adversely affect the heart’s rhythm. NJS

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 61

SPORTING ANSWERS

Will lost ferret live?

Milk bath for rabbits GAMECOOKERY

FERRETING

I recently lost a ferret. I returned to look for her but to no avail. Will she survive in the wild? It all depends on where you lost her, how tame she is and whether she’s likely to come to grief on a road. Like any animal, she would need a good source of food and water to survive. I have known ferrets to be living wild for a year and when someone has picked them up, they have been in good condition, albeit with a few ticks on board. Setting some live catch traps or trail cameras is a good way of catching them back up, but a ferret can travel a long distance in a short space of time. You may have to widen your search area. Usually, if you cannot catch a lost ferret straight away, a week later they will reappear in the same area, so I would persevere with your search, laying some traps down and feeding an area to see if she is still about. Nobody likes to lose a ferret, but that is one of the risks we face. That is also why you should never work a ferret without a ferret finder fitted correctly. I wish you all the luck with your search. SW

A well-fitted ferret finder is essential, especially in wet and windy weather

I have found several references to soaking rabbit meat in milk before cooking “to remove bitterness”. Can you please explain what is going on here? I have often used this technique on offal and will do so for certain cookery methods for rabbit and even pike, but I have no idea why it seems to tenderise and cleanse the meat. I often think a good soak in cold, salted water will achieve much the same effect, but

obviously this does not impart the sweetness that the milk bath does. I can tell you this though: old rabbits washed, jointed and soaked in milk with onions, bay and pepper, then drained, dipped in flour, fried and braised using the strained, boiled and skimmed soaking milk, will make a rather excellent base for all sorts of rabbit dishes, if the meat is allowed to cook and then taken from the bones. Combined with mustard, thyme and garlic for extra flavour, it makes a delicious ‘devilled rabbit’ to serve on toast. Try it. TM

Soaking rabbit meat in milk for a few hours before cooking will result in a more tender, sweeter dish

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62 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

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Expert tips and advice Using lead shot in a boxlock should not affect the gun’s performance

Lead-free load for vintage boxlock SHOTGUNS

I have a boxlock gun made by Holloway & Naughton in the 1930s. It is nitro proofed but only has 2½in chambers. I want to transition towards a lead-free load that is not too expensive. Can you recommend something? Recently, Eley Hawk has brought out a 2½in cartridge loaded with

A broody hen can be used to incubate goose and duck eggs

steel shot which is suitable for older guns. It is loaded with 30g of steel No 4 shot contained in the Eley Pro-Eco biodegradable wad. The manufacturer recommends that no choke tighter than half be used with these cartridges. Getting your gun’s chokes relieved is a simple task for any competent gunsmith. In my experience, most people shoot better with an openbored gun anyway.

I have tried these cartridges in my Charles Lancaster sidelock made in 1909. I found them very good. They are well made with clean-burning powder and effective. Certainly, I could not detect any difference in my shooting from when I used lead shot. More importantly, there was no damage to my gun. These Eley Traditional Steel cartridges will give older guns with 2½in chambers a new lease of life. BH

Hatching goose eggs GAMEKEEPING

Can broody hens hatch duck and goose eggs, or is the incubation period too long? A good broody hen will hatch both. Incubation times don’t really seem to matter if the hen has somewhere quiet to sit and is taken off once a day to feed, have a drink and go to the toilet. I have hatched Muscovy duck eggs under broody hens in the past, and their incubation period is 35 days, so the 28 days for an ordinary duck or goose egg won’t be a problem. Keep the ducklings penned up for the first week if you can, and make sure they have a deep enough drinker to be able to wash/rinse their nostrils of food. LB SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 63

SPORTING ANSWERS

A CCI Suppressor cartridge is a reliable solution for a semi-automatic

Remington 597 cartridge ejection issue RIFLES

I am having minor issues with my Remington 597 semi-automatic in .22 LR. About one-third of spent cartridges do not eject properly when I use it, while fresh cartridges do not reload every time. As a result, I assume I am not using the right rimfire ammunition. I shoot mainly small game such as squirrels and rabbits. I need good accuracy to 50m and good killing power. What would you suggest as a good ammunition for this kind of rifle?

Semi-automatics are always a tad fickle when it comes to their ‘diet’. For sporting use with a sound moderator, you still need a subsonic round for low noise levels, but this usually means less energy to operate the semi-automatic mechanism reliably. I regularly shoot my semi-automatics with the new CCI Suppressor cartridge, which uses a heavier 45-gr lead hollow-point bullet. This is designed to work accurately and reliably in semi-automatic rimfires and expand on game out in the field. That small extra weight — 45-gr instead of the

usual .22 LR weight of 40-gr — provides extra momentum to get the inertia recoil-operated semi-automatic rimfires firing sweetly and reliably. It is quoted at 970fps velocity, making it subsonic, quiet and reliable in any temperature. You may also like to try the Winchester 42-gr Max, as that has a little extra weight. It has a long nose section so is a little sensitive to feeding in some semi-automatics. There are other rounds designed for semiautomatics, from Eley and RWS. These are accurate and reliable but have solid lead round noses and are not designed to expand. BP

A point of difference STALKING

How do you tell if antlers are from a sika or a redsika hybrid? Is it likely that the hybrid will have more than eight points and that the sika will have eight points or less? That’s quite a difficult question to answer in the small amount of space I have available. The answer is that a hybrid will not always have more than eight points, any more than a pure sika will have eight points or less. Some pure sika will have more than eight points, while some hybrids will have eight points or less. Much will depend on the age of the animal, and therefore the maturity of its

antlers and whether it is a first, second or third cross and so on. Many red-sika hybrids, regardless of origins, have eight-point heads as mature animals. Generally, the hybrid will have an antler surface that is more akin to a red deer, while the top points, the inner and outer tines on a sika, will appear as more of a fork in the hybrid and have more of the orientation of a fork as you would expect to see in a hill red stag — but there are always exceptions. The skull size, its length and width, as well as the nose bone length, helps to tell the hybrid from the purebred animal, but with only the skull and antlers it can be challenging. The best guide is to look at the whole animal’s size, coat colour and markings if you have access to these. IW

64 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE

Size, coat colour and markings can confirm whether a sika is a hybrid

Expert tips and advice

Chewing on toys GUNDOGS

What sort of toys should I get for a working labrador puppy? I don’t want to encourage him to be hard-mouthed. What can I get that won’t ruin any training going forward? As a puppy he will teethe as his adult teeth come in. He needs something to chew on so he doesn’t eat your furniture, shoes or even

you. Allowing him to soothe his mouth by chewing on toys will not encourage him to be hard-mouthed at all. He will not be ruined either if you spoil him with a few toys. I discourage the use of squeaky toys — mostly because of the noise and not wanting them to learn that biting is fun. I allow my puppies to have toys when they are in their cage or in the house — milk cartons, old bottles and natural chews such as chicken feet. ES

Crossword / Compiled by Eric Linden / 1509 Across

Letting your puppy have toys or chicken feet in its cage to chew on when teething will prevent it using your furniture or shoes instead

TO CATCH A FISH Orange Tail Nymph This orange tail nymph is one of the most recognisable river flies and accounts for a large number of my fish at this time of year. The gold head bead is often thought to mimic the bubble produced at the natural insect stage. But I think the bead just provides the weight to get the fly to the bottom fast and smooth and it can often give a glint to attract the trout. It works efficiently while in

the moving water of chalkstreams and then the still water of reservoirs. Various kinds of flies appear all year long and the nymph stage is the easiest one for trout to search out consistently. Andrew Sydenham

5 The gun action can change direction like a flash of lightning (4-4) 7 A smaller serving of beer ensures choke is not full-on (4) 9 Does a scuba enthusiast give us the bird? (5) 10 Making a gun pin redundant? (6) 11 Lawrence is holding a little bird (4) 12 The HPR breed reveals a region of interest to channel-hoppers (8) 13 Organising a grand gig, with a shot deer in tow (8) 15 Working dogs serve as family members to disturb the pest (4) 16 Turkey’s leader removes undesirables from the garden in classic country clothing (6)

17 In Honolulu, I give in to gunmaker Franchi (5) 18 The sound of a moderated shot coming from a Portishead cabin (4) 19 Stirs goat stew with a trigger mechanism! (3-5)

Down 1 It’s just not fair when the ground is rough (6) 2 Putting two and two together is a real bore! (4) 3 The role of loaders is to make a filler for roast birds (8) 4 There’s a definite groove to deer-mating season! (3,3) 6 Lower-lying cover showing lack of development? (11) 8 Don’t go short making clear profits from catching rabbits (4-7)

Solution 1507 / 5 May 2021 Across: 7. Blue hare 8. Nose 9. Drakes 10. Squabs 12. Hutch 14. Strain 16. Durham 17. Beech 19. Priest 20. Paddle 22. Kilt 23. Managers Down: 1. All-rounder 2. Neck 3. Raise 4. Density 5. Incubate 6. Hens

12 The best list is revised to include an historic name in gunmaking (8) 14 The team leader comes in to speculate about those invited to the shoot (6) 15 Aims a finger at antler features (6) 17 A fore-end attachment for the polo organisation (4)

11. Binoculars 13. Currents 15. Bantams 18. Spent 19. Pike 21. Digs MYSTERY WORD: LASER WINNER: DAVID FLANDERS, CAMBRIDGE

How to enter To enter our crossword competition, identify the word in the shaded squares and you could win a Fur Feather & Fin Anti-Corrosive gun sleeve (suitable for barrels up to 32in). Due to COVID-19 we are only accepting submissions via email Please email the solution with the crossword number in the subject line, and giving your name, address and mystery word answer to: ollie.harvey@futurenet.com All prizes will be despatched as soon as possible. Rules: Entries must be received by 26 May 2021.All usual conditions apply. Solution and winner will appear in the 2 June 2021 issue.

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 65

Fishing

A fish for all seasons Frreddie eddie Braithwaite Braithwaite-Exle Exle iis reminded of freshwater rock-pooling days in chilly April and lit the barbecue. Because that’s what you do when you live in the UK. On one such afternoon, a friend and I left the meat slow roasting and wandered down to the river to check a few crayfish traps. Early season but still interesting to see what’s about.

Underwater worlds Having caught zero crayfish, we spent an hour or so pottering up the little river checking bankside burrows and carefully turning over stones to reveal miniature underwater worlds in the freshwater equivalent of rock-pooling. This is known in

If it was a competition, minnows and stickleback would net you one point. They are often found in large shoals, swimming freely around weeds and by banksides. Given their numbers, the law of averages dictates that they are a little easier to catch. But don’t be complacent — a delicate scoop of the hands is still needed to avoid them all spilling out of your clutch. Bullheads would be worth two points. Usually only found in ones or twos, they sit fast on the bottom and are nearly always hiding under the larger stones. The key is to approach from downstream. Go slow

“Their speed and agility are already well established even at this early stage of life” my family as bullheading, simply because when we visited Granny, the beck by her house was hoaching with bullheads. Also known as the miller’s thumb or the freshwater sculpin, the bullhead is only around 7cm in length but has played a large part in my introduction to fishing. Grandad, Dad, my brothers and me have all spent countless hours pootling about the beck with trousers and sleeves rolled up and a jar at the ready to examine our catch. Hiding under rocks and among the weeds are endless fishy friends. Minnows, stickleback, eels, trout and salmon parr can all be caught by the patient and persistent fisherman armed only with their hands. But some are certainly harder than others.

Hiding under rocks and in the weeds are endless fishy friends, such as minnows and sticklebacks

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and steady with the lift of any rock and the current can then wash away the silt to reveal your target. The rest is up to you. But beware — they won’t just let you grab them. Eels would earn you three points. Once you spot them, you can often follow them up and down the river. They are not the fastest movers, nor the best hiders, but there is a good reason to why we have the phrase ‘slippery as an eel’. For five points, you need trout and salmon parr. You are unlikely to lay your hands on anything bigger than a few inches but these little rockets are set to grow into the apex gamefish. Their speed and agility are already well established even at this early stage of life. To catch one requires a heron-like steadiness. And, like all my fishing, luck. Aside from points, the rules of bullheading are simple — return every stone and fish to wherever you found it. Rules explained, our walk to the traps quickly turned to competition. Heads down, bottoms up, we managed four bullheads. The score was three-one, in case you were wondering. I’m sure we used to manage 30 or 40. Clearly I’m out of practice, but it was still a happy trip down memory lane. Freddie Braithwaite-Exley is an optimistic fisherman trying to make up for lost time on the riverbank last year by catching a different fish each month. CHARLES JARDINE

have managed to get out with rod and reel quite a lot over the past month. Trout, salmon, mullet and bass have all been on the cards and, while I can’t say they have all been on the bank, it has been an absolute joy to be back fishing with friends. Worthy of a short anecdote was a fishfilled return trip to a reservoir where I had previously blanked. On handing us the life jackets, the boatman proclaimed that we were set for a red-letter afternoon. In fact, his exact words were “if you don’t catch 20, you ought to think about giving up and trying something else”. A first-timer had caught as many from the bank the day before, and some of the boat catches were over the 50 mark. Such comments both simultaneously fill you with positivity and crush you with pressure. Between the two of us we had 16 rainbows to 6lb; fast and furious sport, fishing straight-line buzzers in warm April sunshine. It was enormous fun and neither of us could possibly complain at such a haul. On mooring up, we skirted quickly by the boatman and in doing so avoided anyone raining on our parade. Our tackle is not yet for sale but had we decided that flogging our gear was the only option, I would still have enjoyed a great little session on the river later in the month. We have just endured the coldest April since 1922. Nonetheless, there have been moments when I have donned a pair of shorts, armed myself with tongs and a brew

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE • 67

Lindsay Waddell is a former chairman of the NGO and a retired gamekeeper

Upland keeper Commercial pressures are compelling young gamekeepers to hurtle about, rather than allowing them to develop insight about their patch

Quad bikes make rounds easier but steal an opportunity for keepers to learn about their ground

of your day. It gave you an insight into what you had on your patch and where it was. Whether taught or not, you learned a great deal about the natural world — knowledge that is essential to do your job to the best of your ability, and which many now do not seem to possess. That pressure to check large densities of traps on a daily grind takes its toll, especially when there is little to no return. That takes me to work done here by the GWCT many years ago, when it was granted control of half a large beat to see if it could increase breeding percentage

“Young men are treated as disposable if they cannot stand the pressure” treated as disposable if they cannot stand the pressure to which they are subjected. What I find hard to comprehend is that in the uplands, for example, staffing has multiplied two, three or, in some cases, four-fold in the past 20 years. In addition, almost every single man has his own quad bike and, from what I see, they use them extensively to do their rounds. In theory, that should make the job easier, not harder, but my mentors of yesteryear would be horrified to see traps being checked in that manner, with a quad simply hurtling from one trap to the next and no time spent ‘looking’. Observation of what you saw doing your traps was one of the most important parts

of black grouse by increasing trap density. It made no difference, and the conclusion was that we had the optimum number of traps beyond which there was no benefit. There are now headkeepers of the opinion that if you saturate your ground with traps there is a benefit to be had — but the science proves otherwise. I was told by one keeper following the changeover to the new traps that, because of supply, they had far fewer on the ground and had simply set what they had. His thoughts, months later, were that they had caught as many predators in the good trapping sites as they had with many more that had been set in less favoured ones.

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He was not going to fill the gaps merely for the sake of it.

Gritty issue Medicated grit is another job the modern grouse keeper has to contend with, and its use has become almost industrial. I recall many years ago listening to an eminent member of the GWCT stating that the then proposed grit would simply reduce the severity of the lows when grouse numbers crashed due to the strongyle worm. It has progressed well beyond that. Man has always wanted more when it comes to a range of things, and sport is no different. He found that if he put out grit in sufficient quantities, he could keep grouse densities at numbers never before seen. Numbers of grouse, like numbers of pheasants, equalled more money, not only for the owner but also for the keeper. So thousands of grit boxes have become the norm on grouse moors. It is a pretty soul-destroying job day after day, in grim weather, servicing the boxes for legal requirements to be upheld. It’s one that some are not prepared to do. It is mundane, tedious work with little connection to the land, except it brings in money — and that is the crux of most of what is going on. The keepers of today may have conditions of employment my mentors of yesteryear would not recognise, but would they swap it, even though it was maybe more arduous when done on your own two feet? ALAMY

t was quite disappointing to read the letter in Shooting Times entitled ‘The Old Guard’ (Letters, 7 April). Having watched the transformation of the countryside and its management in recent years, perhaps it should not have surprised me as much as it did. I have noticed there has been a surprising number of young men simply walking away from a career they longed for, but why? Having been responsible for numerous students over the years, it’s true that, even on my part, there were times when I should have been more sympathetic to their lack of knowledge, but I hope they all came through my bad moods and the number of them still working as gamekeepers today gives me some solace that I was not that bad. What has changed in the countryside workplace? The letter did not say whether the estate in question was based in the lowlands or the uplands. However, there are comparisons to be made in both. In a generation or so, the intensification of game management has ramped up, both in the uplands and lowlands. There are more estates placing serious commercial pressure on the regime they run for sporting use, which puts more pressure on the men at the top to produce results. That in itself is no excuse for some of what is going on, with young men being

Aidan Hartley is a farmer, keen Shot and fisherman

A sporting life in Africa It’s not only the ivory trade that threatens elephants — the true battle for these animals is space alone to pick at the meat. It was the only wonderful aspect of this terrible sight — to see a multitude of animals feasting. But the bull was simply too large to devour. By the next day, he was bloated, with legs sticking out straight, his thick hide splashed white with droppings trickling down the cork-tree wrinkles of his flanks. Animals had gashed into his guts through the backside until they could eat no more, nor bear the stink of putrefaction that hung around this rotting balloon, stuck in a puddle of faeces and chyme. The great natural disaster was over. As we drove away past the vultures, they were so replete they were unable to get airborne and they staggered off like drunkards.

Unblinking eyes

always recognised the biggest bull elephant when he passed through the farm. His handsome 65lb tusks had a distinctive curve and a thickness that showed his ivory still had plenty of future growth to come. One afternoon in the woodland at the top of our valley, he was browsing with two other younger bulls, his askari guards, when a gang of poachers ambushed him, spraying a burst of 5.56 rounds that ripped into his lungs and guts. Bleeding and mortally wounded, he staggered away, with the gunmen chasing him.

as he struck out on to the high plains. Separated from the younger bulls and the sight of the main herd of females, he was blinded by pain and, falling and rising once more, then collapsing for the last time.

Last journey

When I took my wife, Claire, and our two children over to Gilfrid’s, we could see the elephant’s last journey in his tracks, up to the point where his carcass lay. Within hours of his death, the scavengers had converged. When we arrived, the cage of his chest was a door, out of which a lioness

“It was the only wonderful aspect of this — to see a multitude of animals feasting” Our neighbour, Gilfrid, who had heard the shooting, arrived on the scene and engaged the bandits in an exchange of gunfire. As bullets flew, the elephant and his askaris got away but he was bleeding profusely. He died slowly, stumbling through bush, sagging on his great legs

emerged, caped with gore. Her young cubs were around her, already stuffed with meat. When the lions were done, hyenas and silver-backed jackals closed in. Flocks of vultures hopped closer, playing grandmother’s footsteps whenever the hyenas turned away — until they were left

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GETTY IMAGES

Humanity has unrelenting demand for land and resources, disregarding all resulting casualties

The body was headless. Soon after the bull died, to prevent poachers from coming at the dead of night to retrieve those tusks, Gilfrid had hacked the skull off with a chainsaw, hooked it up with ropes to the back of his tractor and towed it to his farmyard until the wildlife services arrived to retrieve the ivory. The action of dragging the head along the ground had rubbed the hide off, but not the flesh. The head sat in the yard, with the eyes still in their sockets, and, as I stood there, the bull seemed alive as he looked at me, unblinking. The staring eyes were accusing, making me think of where we were headed. The poachers were poor men pulling triggers to feed their families. Governments were ineffectual or corrupt or both, allowing traders to operate almost with impunity. The buyers were Chinese, millions of them, who believed ivory brought them luck, and that removing tusks did not kill an elephant any more than shearing a fleece causes the death of a sheep. In the end, the trade in ivory might be stopped if the Chinese could be persuaded it is silly to buy the stuff. However, the true battle for elephants is space: where are these huge creatures to live in this overcrowded world? We, the humans, are too many, and are unrelenting in our demand for land, invading every last corner of wilderness left in the world.

Alasdair Mitchell

Sharpshooter Whether you admire the aesthetics or respect the practicalities, a knife is very much a part of your hunting kit — just make sure you look after it

nce, when I was 13, I had been ferreting and needed to hock a couple of rabbit carcasses in order to hang them on my bicycle handlebars. I was finding the job a bit tricky because my cheap little penknife had never been sharpened. Suddenly, something snapped. I noticed a surfeit of blood. It was my own. My finger was slit to the bone. I suppose this supports the old saying about knives: it’s the blunt ones that cut you. If my knife had been properly maintained, I wouldn’t have had to force it and it wouldn’t have folded and caught my finger. In any case, it would have been safer if it had a locking mechanism. Interestingly, recent knife legislation dictates that you cannot carry a locking knife in a public place without a lawful reason. I suppose you could say that this is a case of knife law colliding with knife lore. Despite my early attempt at DIY surgery, I generally prefer folding knives. I don’t like carrying a knife in a sheath on my belt, preferring to carry a folder in my pocket or backpack. I have a slightly irrational concern that a knife worn on a belt might fall out if I have to crawl or push through cover.

Knife users tend to fall into one of two factions: those who appreciate the aesthetic qualities of a hand-built knife, and the utilitarians, who want a knife that works, without the poetry — not to mention the cost. I like to count myself in the latter camp. Somehow, I can manage to gralloch a deer without the benefit of mammoth ivory or Damascus steel. And yet… I have a guilty secret. For special occasions, I have a slim, elegant and rather

There are also specialist factory knives. Mike Robinson, the chef and deer manager, has worked with a manufacturer to produce a knife that meets the very specific needs of deerstalkers. I cannot think of anybody better qualified to design such an implement. The Swedes produce some of the very best knife steel. My own everyday deer knife is a locking folder called the Swede 10 made by EKA, based in the ancestral steelmaking town of Eskilstuna.

“Utilitarians simply want a knife that works, without the poetry — or the cost” understated little knife that bears a magical name on its blade: Alan Wood. I bought it from the man in person, many years ago. You won’t find a fancy website for Alan but, among those who know, he is regarded as one the finest knifemakers in the world. There is a whole world of custom knifemaking in the UK, with a roll call of names that are revered within their field: Emberleaf, Stuart Mitchell, Guy Stainthorp… Their handcrafted creations are regarded by aficionados as the knife equivalent of the likes of Purdey, Holland and Rigby.

I have also heard good things about EKA’s swingblade model, which has a cult following. And very affordable knives from another Swedish maker, Mora, have been favoured by stalkers for years. The Americans also make good factory knives, with notable firms including Buck, with its iconic 110 Folding Hunter, and Gerber, with its famous Gator series. Then there is the German firm of Böker, which produces some fine hunting blades. Come to think of it, I feel I really do need yet another knife…

DOG BY KEITH REYNOLDS

SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE, ISSN 0037-4164, is published weekly, incorporating Shooting Magazine, Shooting Life, British Sportsman, The Angler’s News & Sea Fisher’s Journal and Field Sport, by Future PLC, Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA, United Kingdom. © 2021 Future PLC. Printed by Walstead UK Ltd. Distributed by Marketforce, 5 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5HU; tel 020 3787 9001; marketforce.co.uk We are committed to only using magazine paper which is derived from responsibly managed, certified forestry and chlorine-free manufacture. The paper in this magazine was sourced and produced from sustainable managed forests, conforming to strict environmental and socioeconomic standards. The manufacturing paper mill holds full FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification and accreditation All contents © 2021 Future Publishing Limited or published under licence. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used, stored, transmitted or reproduced in any way without the prior written permission of the publisher. Future Publishing Limited (company number 2008885) is registered in England and Wales. Registered office: Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All information contained in this publication is for information only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of going to press. Future cannot accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in such information. You are advised to contact manufacturers and retailers directly with regard to the price of products/services referred to in this publication. Apps and websites mentioned in this publication are not under our control. We are not responsible for their contents or any other changes or updates to them. This magazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein. If you submit material to us, you warrant that you own the material and/ or have the necessary rights/permissions to supply the material and you automatically grant Future and its licensees a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in any/ all issues and/or editions of publications, in any format published worldwide and on associated websites, social media channels and associated products. Any material you submit is sent at your own risk and, although every care is taken, neither Future nor its employees, agents, subcontractors or licensees shall be liable for loss or damage. We assume all unsolicited material is for publication unless otherwise stated, and reserve the right to edit, amend, adapt all submissions. Subscription rates for 52 issues: UK — £143. Priority Service (5-7 days): Europe — ¤234, ROW — £199. The US annual subscription price is $305. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by agent named Worldnet Shipping Inc., 156-15, 146th Avenue, 2nd Floor, Jamaica, NY 11434, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Jamaica NY 11431. US Postmaster: Send address changes to SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE, Worldnet Shipping Inc., 156-15, 146th Avenue, 2nd Floor, Jamaica, NY 11434, USA. Subscription records are maintained at Future PLC, Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA, United Kingdom. Air Business Ltd is acting as our mailing agent. All prices include postage and packing. Enquiries and subscription orders: Future PLC, PO Box 272, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 3FS. Cheques payable to Future PLC. Tel: +44 (0)845 845 123 1231, fax +44 (0) 1444 445599.

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