I remember my first mouthful of rook pie. It was also my last. The Quorn Hunt held an annual rook supper in May. Puppy walkers, earth-stoppers — this was before the Hunting Act — and farmers were thanked for their support by way of invitation to the shindig. Beer flowed, hunting songs were sung and the pub walls shook with cheers as the golden-crusted pie was brought proudly to the table.
I found the rook filling too gamey, with an overwhelming hint of soil to the aftertaste. But the pastry was excellent and the pub’s collie, less fussy than me, gratefully accepted my under-the-table meaty offerings.
May is the traditional time to control rooks. The youngsters, known as ‘branchers’, leave the nest to flex and test their near-flightless wings. They sway in the uppermost boughs of the rookery, raucously calling to their parents when they return with food. This dependent stage lasts for a handful of days, after which the juveniles are expected to fend for themselves. It is only at this brancher stage when rooks are considered as palatable pie ingredients — by some. As a result, May became the time to thin out the youngsters from rookeries that prospered on nearly every farm, for both culinary and pest control purposes.
The last rook supper I attended was many years ago and since then rooks and rookeries have changed. Rookeries recorded by the Suffolk Biodiversity Information Service in 1975 compared with those in 202021 adds weight to my observation (suffolkbis.org.uk/node/943). Rooks once nested in widespread but small communities. Today they have concentrated their nesting habits, living en masse in closer proximity to roads and villages.
Denne historien er fra June 02, 2021-utgaven av Shooting Times & Country.
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Denne historien er fra June 02, 2021-utgaven av Shooting Times & Country.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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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
Serious matters
An old gamebook prompts a contemplation on punt-gunning
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
Debutant gundogs
There's lots to think about when it comes to making the decision about when to introduce your dog to shooting
When the going gets rough
Al Gabriel returns to the West London Shooting School to brush up on his rough shooting technique
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
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
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
Stalking Diary
Stalkers can be a sentimental bunch, and they often carry a huge attachment to their hill
Gamekeeper
Alan Edwards believes unique, private experiences can help keepers become more competent and passionate custodians of the countryside