The pheasant or the egg?
Sporting Shooter|April 2017

Have you ever stopped to wonder what it really takes to put birds over the Guns? Tim Maddams is on a quest to find out.

The pheasant or the egg?

With the game season now at an end, many of us will not think about a pheasant or a partridge until next season begins, but of course it goes without saying that if we are hoping to shoot game again next winter then birds will have to be put onto the ground and kept there.

And that got me to thinking – how many of us really understand what goes into getting a few birds over the Guns in the shooting season? I know most of the people I shoot with know the rudiments, but what of the more complex issues surrounding game rearing? It’s certainly true that there are many different systems, and with partridges and ducks on the increase on many shoots, there must also be unique systems for rearing those species too. I myself have often wondered, for instance, how they manage to get so many eggs hatched and reared in time for the season. Many shoots now simply buy-in poults, but they must still come from somewhere! So where, how and, importantly, under what conditions are these birds reared and what is the best system for each shoot?

Bu hikaye Sporting Shooter dergisinin April 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye Sporting Shooter dergisinin April 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

SPORTING SHOOTER DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
RSPB gives mixed message on shooting
Sporting Shooter

RSPB gives mixed message on shooting

Having recently attended the RSPB’s virtual AGM, Conor O’Gorman discusses the outcome of the charity’s year-long review of game bird shooting

time-read
2 dak  |
December 2020
Causeway for concern
Sporting Shooter

Causeway for concern

Alan Jarrett’s renewed interest in reading takes him down memory lane to an offshore island duck flight that very nearly ended in disaster

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Through a purple patch
Sporting Shooter

Through a purple patch

The Garrows Estate is taking a conservation-focused approach to restoring the wildlife populations and biodiversity on the Scottish heather moorland.

time-read
8 dak  |
December 2020
When the wheels fall off
Sporting Shooter

When the wheels fall off

Losing form on a day’s shooting can be infuriating, especially if you’ve been shooting like a god up to that point. Simon O’Leary looks at some common causes and how to remedy them

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Beaches, books & bad behaviour!
Sporting Shooter

Beaches, books & bad behaviour!

The annual Kay family vacation to Northumberland offers a chance to give the cockers a blast on the beach – although they don’t always shower themselves in glory, as Ryan Kay recalls...

time-read
7 dak  |
December 2020
Using the Stop whistle
Sporting Shooter

Using the Stop whistle

Now you’ve instilled the basics, it’s time to up the ante with some more tricky distance work. Howard Kirby explains how to take the core Stop whistle command to the next level

time-read
5 dak  |
December 2020
The humble teal
Sporting Shooter

The humble teal

They may be tiny, but as far as Rupert Butler is concerned, the appeal of this little duck is huge. He recalls some of his most memorable nights in pursuit of these aerial acrobats

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020
Fab all-rounder
Sporting Shooter

Fab all-rounder

Mike is impressed with the Fabarm Elos B2 Field Notte, which offers great value for money, is suited to fieldwork or clays and is future-proofed for use with steel in all choke constrictions

time-read
5 dak  |
December 2020
CALL OF THE WILD
Sporting Shooter

CALL OF THE WILD

Dom Holtam reconnects with one of the purest forms of shotgun shooting as he walks-up woodcock over pointing dogs in the Scottish Highlands

time-read
8 dak  |
December 2020
A yen for the Fens
Sporting Shooter

A yen for the Fens

Tony Jackson recounts a memorable duck flight over an area of Fenland in Norfolk with his friend and author, the late Alan Savory

time-read
4 dak  |
December 2020