I’ve managed a few outings and a bit of roost shooting but otherwise it has been a quiet winter. Thanks to Mother Nature, there’s been wild food everywhere, which has kept the destructive rural pest off the crops and out of harm’s way. There was a good beech mast this year which kept the pigeon occupied for a bit. Then the acorns dragged on and lately I’ve been seeing pigeon devouring ivy berries, but the numbers have been sparse and I do wonder if we may have lost a population of birds to France. Perhaps they are down there in those vast oak forests. It’s speculation but I think there might be truth in the theory that due to a lack of winter rape as a holding crop and major food source through the tough months, they start to cross the Channel.
The lack of rape has been compounded by reduced game cover — due to severely wet weather rotting any goodness in the maize. Since the snow in early to mid-January in the bottom half of the UK, I have seen the few birds that are around switch on to what little rape there is.
There is another theory that you can kill hundreds of pigeon in the snow, and every year I hear people say things like “clear a patch on a rape crop and birds pile in”. Sadly this is not the case. In thick snow birds will not move. They become snow blind, with all of their land features disappearing, making navigation to a food source very difficult. In a light dusting of snow, or when it melts to reveal the landscape again, their normal behaviour returns.
Surprising bag
This story is from the February 10, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the February 10, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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