Bringing dishonour
Shooting Times & Country|September 30, 2020
Birds of prey can and do thrive on keepered land but the criminal few drag us all down with them
MIKE SWAN
Bringing dishonour
Sparrowhawks. Every time I see one I cuss. Whether it is a big female in relation to my precious grey partridges, or a musket (male) with designs on the house martins under my eaves — and the blue tits and other small birds at my garden feeder — they are a threat to things I love. But the cuss is not without its measure of admiration; sparrowhawks are supreme stealth and ambush predators.

Picture this: a good friend was parked on his farm drive, along a narrow and dead straight lane with neatly trimmed hedges alongside. He was beside a gap, looking out across the fields to his left. When he looked back he spotted a musket powering towards him down the middle of the lane, a foot or so above the tarmac. Just before it reached him the bird set its wings to glide and, without hesitation, slipped under the car.

A glance in the nearside wing mirror revealed it coming back up, then banking hard to its right down a strip of bushes, where experience had clearly taught it there was a fair chance of catching some small bird by surprise.

Whatever the media may think, raptors are mostly doing very well in the UK. When I was a child growing up in west Surrey, I needed to go at least as far west as the New Forest for the chance to see a buzzard. But, in the half a century since then, they have recolonised the lost ground and are now found in pretty much every parish of the UK.

They had, of course, been pushed to the western and northern fringes by human activity, but let’s avoid using the word persecution; it has connotations of deliberate cruelty which do not apply. Our ancestors, and not only keepers, killed them for a multitude of reasons, of which protection of game was only one.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRYView all
United we stand
Shooting Times & Country

United we stand

Following United Utilities' decision to end grouse shooting on its land, Lindsay Waddell asks what will happen if we ignore our vital moors

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Serious matters
Shooting Times & Country

Serious matters

An old gamebook prompts a contemplation on punt-gunning

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023
They're not always as easy as they seem
Shooting Times & Country

They're not always as easy as they seem

While coneys of the furry variety don't pose a problem for Blue Zulu, he's left frustrated once again by bolting bunnies of the clay sort

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Debutant gundogs
Shooting Times & Country

Debutant gundogs

There's lots to think about when it comes to making the decision about when to introduce your dog to shooting

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
When the going gets rough
Shooting Times & Country

When the going gets rough

Al Gabriel returns to the West London Shooting School to brush up on his rough shooting technique

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition
Shooting Times & Country

The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition

In this excerpt from the 60th anniversary edition of the BDS's Field Guide To British Deer, Charles Smith-Jones considers the noise they make

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
A step too far?
Shooting Times & Country

A step too far?

Simon Garnham wonders whether a new dog, a new gun and two different fields in need of protection might have been asking too much for one afternoon's work

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Two bucks before breakfast
Shooting Times & Country

Two bucks before breakfast

A journey from old South London to rural Hertfordshire to stalk muntjac suggests that the two aren't as far detached as they might seem

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Stalking Diary
Shooting Times & Country

Stalking Diary

Stalkers can be a sentimental bunch, and they often carry a huge attachment to their hill

time-read
2 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Gamekeeper
Shooting Times & Country

Gamekeeper

Alan Edwards believes unique, private experiences can help keepers become more competent and passionate custodians of the countryside

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023