Early Season Birds

With the foreshore in full bloom and the promise of some long-awaited sport, 1 September can’t come soon enough for Alan, but not all aspects of those early-season days are anticipated in equal measure...

- Alan Jarrett

No matter how many seasons have passed, each 1 September is looked forward to with relish. In fact, in many ways, the more seasons that pass by, the more the anticipation grows, for there is a degree of certainty about what lies ahead.

There are a number of certainties about September, not all of which are looked forward to with pleasant anticipation! It will be hot – it is often among the most reliably hot months of the year – and that is the root cause of so much difficulty and unpleasantness.

With the heat comes flies to pester you, and any birds you happen to shoot. A long day on the marsh can sometimes even lead to birds starting to turn green, especially if they happen to be gut-shot. Whichever the case, they must be prepared for the freezer or oven without delay, for there is none of the late-season luxury of being able to prepare birds at your leisure.

If a long walk is entailed the warm weather brings with it obvious problems of insufficient water for both wildfowler and dog. On such days the dog can opt for drinking from the tide, and it seems even with the offer of fresh water they will often do so. Mine has an infuriating habit of gulping saltwater as she swims! This, in turn, has inevitable consequences, leaving you to hope that any resultant sickness is done on the marsh rather than in the back of the car on the way home!