Flightline theory

Why wait for pigeons to return to favoured feeding areas when you can find them on everyday flightlines? It’s worth a try — but planning and recon are vital

- ADAM HART

Of all the arguments for not getting vaccinated, the ability to cast a fishing rod or point a gun must rank among the least common. I worried that the injection, like last time, would deaden my skinny arm, making it harder to cast and shoot. The seatrout rivers of west Wales require precision casting, not to mention the need for dexterity in a pigeon hide.

Nevertheless, when my appointment came around, I duly ventured to our local leisure centre for a second dose of Pfizer’s finest. Predictably, my arm became painful, so I left it hanging feebly by my side while I cursed Covid. How was I going to keep on top of the pigeons?

Miraculously, the pigeons seemed to realise I was unavailable for shooting and ceased feeding in numbers. In Pembrokeshire, we have reached a lull in the summer. The winter barley and wheat stubbles are two or three weeks old and unattractive to pigeons, whereas the standing crops have enjoyed calm weather with relatively little rain and wind. The pigeons had temporarily halted their feeding frenzy and were waiting for the combines to roll again. I was at a loose end. But not for long. An idea had popped into my mind that had little chance of success but would make for an interesting experiment nonetheless.

What if, instead of trying to shoot birds as they came into a field to feed, I set up under an established flightline and tried to shoot birds on their daily countryside meanderings? Given the loyalty pigeons can have to a flightline, the experiment warranted at least an afternoon.