Field battery

Peter Theobald gears up for his favourite time of the year to engage with his old adversary

- Peter Theobald

Most serious decoyers will tell you that they have favourite times of year when it comes to shooting pigeons. It may be the start of the spring drillings, or the emergence of the early pea shoots, and is usually connected to the fact that there will be an increase in shooting opportunities. My favourite period is fast approaching, because July signals the time when pigeons have access to the protein-rich bounty of cereal crops.

With spring drillings a distant memory, woodies have had to exist on a variety of green crops such as stunted rape, clover or pea shoots, and, while they can survive on such a diet, it will not build their fat reserves, essential for successful breeding. Granted, pigeons are recorded as breeding in every month of the year, but it is no coincidence that squab survival rates increase dramatically when the parents have been feeding on cereals.

Recall

Now is the time of year when we must have a photographic memory of all the crops grown on our permissions if we are not going to miss opportunities. Don't rely on farmers to give you a call when birds are hitting a certain crop, they are far too busy and are more likely to tell a farmhand to put out a gas gun.