Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2016 i Sporting Gun

“Fellow allotmenteers hang around my plot in the hope of a few pigeon or some venison” It’s always encouraging to hear stories of conservation successes in conjunction with shooting, and BASC’s Green Shoots Mapping project is a great example of this. BASC recently announced that area the land used by shooters to record wildlife on the Green Shoots Mapping website is now double that designated as National Nature Reserves. With more than 4,500 square kilometres mapped by shooters, this is a fantastic achievement, considering the Green Shoots Mapping was only introduced in 2012. If you don’t already use this fantastic online tool, I thoroughly recommend it – not only will you be helping shooting, but you’ll also find it useful for planning when it comes to your shoot. Another great…

Sauer is a well-known manufacturer that commands a lot of respect in the hunting world. The company formed in 1751, making it the oldest firearms manufacturer still active in Germany today. Producing high-end pistols, rifles and shotguns, J. P. Sauer und Sohn is certainly a company with expertise. Since 1993, Sauer had built its reputation on the 202, a rifle that was seen as a premium rifle in the UK market and around the world. It could be said that since then, in the UK market at least, the make was somewhat pushed aside by Blaser and Mauser. Then came some new and exciting changes, with the launch of the 404 in 2015. And now Sauer has developed another rifle to fight back: the Sauer 100, a new entry-level rifle.…

“There was an almighty splash as Shane’s goose landed next to him and mine fell into the water” You join us following the success of the recon mission with Shane putting the first goose in the bag. We headed back to the digs with high morale about what the rest of the week may have in store for us. That night we were joined by Chris’s son James and we started to organise the next day’s action plan. Day two on the Tay The second day we decided to split up and hit different areas of the foreshore. Chris and James had rearranged equipment late the night before to allow them to spend a full day in their sea kayaks. Their plan was to paddle out into the estuary early…

“The blighters would take a bite or two out of each apple before moving on to the next” On a Surrey farm where I help control pests, there is a magical moment every evening. It’s as regular as clockwork and occurs near dusk. The only warning is distant high-pitched squawks “kyik… kyik … kyik”. Regular shooters know the drill and swiftly duck behind some cover and turn to the farm’s South East corner, shotguns up and ready. They are coming. Blink and you will miss them. Within seconds, scores of bright green arrows flash overhead, squawking like crazy, tightly packed, tall hedge height, and going like the clappers. With a loud whoosh that threatens to remove your cap, they are gone. Two or three Guns can usually drop a brace…

“It can be a good time to assess drives to see what did and didn’t work, and why” If I had a pound for every time someone asked me: “What do you keepers do when the season is over?” I would be a rich man. While it may appear to some Guns that a keeper is only busy during the season, this is not the case and a keeper’s job never ceases. I generally end the season with mixed feelings. After the pressure of shoot days – and this season we have had 85 – it is something of a relief when it is all over, but at the same time I miss the camaraderie and seeing Guns enjoying the chance to shoot some birds that I’m really proud of.…

Rat control is a never-ending part of my job, with this time of the year resulting in around 60 per cent of my call outs. I often find myself chasing rats around commercial businesses, waste sites and domestic households. I have heard some very scary stories of people feeling them run across their feet and hearing them in the walls. Recently I was called out to a job where a woman had heard some rustling on the baby monitor only to find the baby sharing a cot with a full-grown rat. I often get asked to help out on shoots where rats are a problem, especially under feeders, which can be an issue because of the holes, causing disease and loss of grain. Trapping There are many different types of…

Venison moussaka Ingredients 1 onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped Olive oil 1lb minced venison 8oz mushrooms chopped 1 tin chopped tomatoes 2tbsp parsley, finely chopped Salt & pepper 2 tbsp tomato concentrate Stock 4 to 6 aubergines Flour 4 to 6tbsp grated Parmesan How to cook Fry the onion and garlic in some olive oil until softened. Add the venison and continue cooking, stirring from time to time until brown. Add the chopped mushrooms, tomatoes, parsley and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is almost cooked. Add the tomato concentrate and enough stock to cover the meat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile slice the aubergines thinly, dust with flour and fry on both sides in hot oil, then drain on kitchen towel.…

A lurcher by definition is a crossbred creature, one created by a number of breeds with the intention to retain attributes from each ingredient of the mixture. Such cocktails have been created for centuries – long before it was trendy to cross one breed to another. Some say a lurcher is no more than a mongrel, while there may be some truth in such a statement, on the other side of the coin a pedigree is little more than a family of dogs that has been inbred over a long period of time to ensure they breed true to type. Why crossbreed? It’s a fact that there are few breeds, if any, which have all the needed qualities for the job of long hours in rough terrain with the ability…

No matter what fieldsport you are involved in, the chances are you will have a canine companion, whether it is to hunt up and flush gamebirds for the Gun or to control pest species such as rats or rabbits. Exactly how long canines have provided companionship has recently been revised: instead of pinning domestication between 11,000 to 16,000 years ago, new genetic evidence even shows that man’s best friend may have split from wolves 27,000 to 40,000 years ago. It is fairly certain is that those first “domestic dogs” would have gone out hunting with early man perhaps to help bring down such prey as mammoths. Over the centuries the dog has been selectively bred and various types have been developed to undertake different tasks for its human masters. The…

“Wearing a Kris of a quality ‘above your station’ in life was an offence punishable by death” Sitting in my office at Holt’s Auctioneers, surrounded by the arms and armour of generations passed, it never fails to impress me how important and revered some of these objects were to the people that owned them. Take for instance the Kris knife. Found originally throughout the Malayan Archipelago, from Java to Bali and in all sizes from a small eating utensil to a full-blown sword, these Krisses (the plural for Kris) with their characteristic wavy blades have flooded the tourist market for years. However, take time to examine one properly and what initially might appear to be a badly corroded blade could well turn out to be a fine example, centuries old,…

“Many of the Guns travelled the length of the country to experience the Upperwood birds” Among the wild rugged beauty of the South Pennines and the Peak District National Park is the small. but beautiful village, Greenfield. It was here that I had the privilege to spend a sub-zero January day on the glorious Upperwood Estate as a guest of the Crowther family, who own 5,500 acres and rent a further 3,500 acres of countryside that has been their family home for four generations. The estate is owned by Christopher Crowther and his three children, James, who runs the shoot and organises the day, Chris who helps out with the gamekeeping on the estate and Claire, who runs the picking-up team. History In the early 1900s, Upperwood was a sporting…

If pigeons are your bread and butter throughout the year, you’ll invariably find far more shooting opportunities outside the game and wildfowl seasons. I’ve never been one for putting the gun away for the summer, and with the decoying gear permanently loaded up and sorted out, and a constant eye kept on any local pigeon movements, I’m ready to take my chances when the weather and conditions are right. In my neck of the woods the bulk of cereal sowing now seems to be carried out in autumn, but an isolated bit of spring drill can give the brief opportunity of a great day out. With growth rate dependent on weather conditions, early spring can also provide the best chances of making a few decent bags over oilseed rape. It…

Sporting Gun readers can assist research Green parakeets have spread across Europe and are now established in UK. A team of researchers from the University of Kent says that Sporting Gun readers can help track the spread of this non-native species . If you shoot a green parakeet whilst controlling pests, please remove a wing feather and forward this to the research team. Put the feather in a ziplock bag or envelope together with a short note stating where and when it was culled (Postcode, address or map reference). Send the feather to: Dr Jim Groombridge, Reader in Biodiversity Conservation, Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NR Genetic analysis of the feather will enable researchers track the source…

“Most British deer species impact on woodland in a variety of ways” Deer management is becoming an increasingly important issue in relation to the sustainability of the British countryside. Understanding the viewpoints of each stakeholder, the requirements of each environment and relating this to the ecology of each deer species is vital when creating a bespoke, sustainable management plan for any area in question. Our latest investigation, for the Deer Management Unit of our course at the Northern School of Game and Wildlife, has been profiling each of the resident wild deer species in the UK and their impacts on habitats. Researching and understanding each of the deer species’ feeding behaviour and requirements can help in spotting and analysing deer impacts across a range of different habitats. Browsing Most British…

“Two of the most likely sources of danger are boundary crossings and livestock” Most of the shooting magazines have endless features on things such as kit and fieldcraft, however, one issue is often overlooked – safety. Now, I’m the last person in the world to give breathing room to the health and safety Nazis, but I also want to come home in one piece. Hunting at night has its own risks, so let us look at what they might be. Shooting from a truck doesn’t pose the same hazards as those faced by people who venture out on foot. The reasons for doing so vary with the terrain – I agree that there is little point in trudging across endless flatlands if a good vehicle does the job better. Anyone…

“If you feel really hard done by, persist with it and seek help from knowledgeable shooters” Oh dear! Having just passed my 75 th  birthday I had hoped to hang up the Gone Fishin’sign and leave all this behind. But the problems seem endless so perhaps we’d better have another look at the subject before the Grim Reaper gets his scythe into me! I won’t delve into the politics because David Frost does it so much better. I’m just the thug with the sharpened pencil who gets called in when victims of the licensing system can’t get any sense out of their local lot. That should not happen, but I’m afraid that all too often it does, despite agreed conditions, despite circulars from the Firearms and Explosives Licensing Working…

With the appalling weather over the previous two months we are behind with our cull. We will be out every opportunity we can to catch up, so January and February are going to be busy. In March, although does are in season, we tend to do less stalking. Under normal conditions the cull would be just about there and we would be very selective in what we culled. This March will be different, I am sure we will still be trying to achieve respectable numbers. The buck season is just around the corner starting 1 April and through January and February we have a good idea of what we have and where. Roll on April, when the buck season opens.…

During 2015 there were 217 Clumber spaniel puppies registered in Britain. Compare this with 10,500 springer spaniels and 22,500 cocker spaniels registered and you will realise that this is not a common breed. Historic theory The breed’s history is uncertain before the middle of the 19th century. One theory is that it originated in France, stating that the Duc de Noailles, at the time of the French Revolution, gave his kennel of prized spaniels to the Duke of Newcastle at Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire. The theory goes, that the now extinct Alpine spaniel was bred with basset hounds, and the Pyrenean mountain dog, also known as the Great Pyrenees. A second theory is that it is descended from the old type of Blenheim spaniel, which was later to be incorporated…

A recent article in the veterinary press on managing gundog injuries ran to nine pages, demonstrating that working dogs are more at risk than their pet counterparts. Having seen very many happy dogs at work, I am sure they would all say it was worth it! Obviously, injuries vary greatly according to the nature of work carried out; eye trauma, for example, is far more common in dogs used for beating than the trusty old Lab sitting at a peg, but all owners should have a basic understanding of the most common wounds and what to do about them. One statistic might shock you: in a survey carried out by orthopaedic surgeon, John Houlton, dogs had a 22 per cent of being injured during a season. Only 47 per cent…

Serves: Ingredients 2½lb (1.2kg ) saddle of venison ½ bottle red wine 300ml g ame stock or beef if g ame not available 450g mushr ooms (any type available) 30 aspar agus spears 1 large leek 4 cloves garlic Juice of ½ lemon COOKING METHOD 1 For this dish use a well-fatted saddle of venison, rolled and tied as in the picture. Country butchers and gamedealers will be able to prepare the joint for you. As this is a prime cut, roasting time is kept to a minimum. Use a heavy-bottomed metal skillet with just enough cooking oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Add a smashed clove of garlic (sliced garlic can easily burn and turn bitter). Seal the venison on all sides, then transfer to a preheated…

Due to the popularity of Shop Front we cannot guarantee when your FREE advert will appear. We operate on a strictly first come first served basis. GUNS FOR SALE W.W. Greener 12-bore, 20in barrels, 2¾in chambers, £450. Also Sauer 16-bore, 28in barrels, 2¾in chambers, £200. Also Marlin Goose Gun, single bolt, 12-bore, 36in barrels, 3in chambers, £150. Also BSA 20-bore, s/s, 28in barrels, ejector steel proof, £500. Also Franchi Auto, as new, 20-bore, m/c, steel proof, £500. Tel 01455 845043 (Leicestershire). Browning B2G, 12-bore, 30in barrels, Sporter, Teague choked, made in 1995, beautiful Belgian-made gun, c/w case, £3,950. Also Browning Liege, 12-bore, game gun, Belgium made, 28in barrels, ¼ and ¾ chokes, c/w case, £525. Also Miroku MK38, Sporterised Trap, 30in barrels, ¼ and ¾ chokes, near mint condition, still…

How can an old German military submachine gun be worth up to £24,000? The quick answer could be “only in America”, but it is true, and this figure and those for other guns gives a fascinating glimpse of values on the other side of the Atlantic. One of the top auction houses in America is James D. Julia Inc, of Fairfield, Maine, and its bill of fare for the spring auction gives a good idea, not just of American values, but of the sort of stuff that comes under the hammer at a top American auction. Some of the top lots are no different to those you would find at a top British sale – London Best guns and double rifles from the likes of Purdey, Holland & Holland and…

Over the past four years our little roughshooting syndicate has gone from strength to strength and we now have some excellent ground to shoot over. We have been lucky enough to find some fantastic keepers who understand what we want from of a day’s shooting, small bags, plenty of laughs and a chance to enjoy shooting over our spaniels. None of us field trial our dogs and each time we go out one or more of the dogs will have a “mishap” and its handler will quite rightly be on the receiving end of a tirade of good humoured abuse – it’s what the Circle of Trust is all about! Varied bags One of our favourite places to shoot is on a 6,000 acre privately owned estate right on our…

It is usually assumed, in the pigeon shooting world, that roost shooting only takes place during the months of February and March. This is mainly due to the fact that most good roosting woods are located on estates where some form of gameshooting takes place, and the keepers will not allow anyone in the woods until the season is finished. Although I too run a small pheasant shoot, I have no qualms, should the fancy take me, of shooting the little 15 acre wood for pigeons coming in to roost. Pheasants take not the slightest notice of the noise, often going up to roost within 50 yards of my position. Admittedly, I shoot the wood very sparingly, no more than once or twice a year, but there are occasions when…

Acreage: 20 acres Parking: up to 200 cars Traps: Around 50 Promatics Clays: 35p each Claymate system: Yes Catering: Hot and cold food available Lodge: Spacious and capable of seating 50 visitors with outdoor seating as well. Seating is tables and chairs as well as comfortable settees and armchairs. Toilet facilities are excellent and cater for disabled visitors. Ammunition and accessories: The lodge stocks a range of Lyalvale ammunition, shooting glasses and hearing protection. Opening times: Every Tuesday and Thursday and every second Saturday of each month Instructors: There is a long list of instructors who can be called upon with Richard, Tanya and Sean Fox also available. Young Shots: Half price lessons available for under-16s in the school holidays. Disabled access to stands: Yes. Membership: No. Corporate days and…

GUNDOGS: GRAHAM WATKINS A professional gundog trainer for more than 35 years and runs Gamegoer Gundogs. VETERINARY: NEIL MCINTOSH A practising vet in Scotland. TUITION: JOHN BIDWELL 6 times World FITASC champ and pro shooting coach. LEGAL: DAVID FROST Author of Sporting Shooting and the Law. TECHNICAL: MIKE GEORGE Engineering author with a deep love of gunmaking. GUNDOGS: LEZ GRAHAM Gundog trainer and author of the Pet Gundogbooks. PIGEONS: PETER THEOBALD Author of Woodpigeon: The Ultimate Quarry. STALKING: GEORGE WALLACE Former National Gamekeepers’ Organisation’s firearms consultant. FERRETS: ED COOK Professional rabbit catcher working over 30,000 acres. PEST CONTROL & WILDFOWL: TOM SYKES Passionate wildfowler and pest controller…

“Two bumblebee species have gone extinct in the last 70 years and two more are on the brink” Across Europe, 38 per cent of bee and hoverfly species are in decline. In the UK, half of 24 bumblebee species are in decline. In fact, two bumblebee species have gone extinct in the last 70 years and two more are on the brink. So what can we do on our shoot to help our pollinators? A good wild flower margin can be a very beneficial and attractive farmland habitat. If properly established and well managed, they will support a broad range of invertebrates including pollinating insects like bumblebees and honey bees, plant feeding insects such as grasshoppers, bugs and butterflies, and predatory invertebrates such as spiders and beetles. These margins should…

Before you set out If you’re going out for a session, and this applies to hunting in daylight as well as at night, you need to think about what you’re likely to face. It’s far better to be over-prepared than to find you’re ill equipped. Whether there’s a chance of physical exertion, or not, make sure you get some rest before you leave or you won’t perform well. Likewise, hunger and dehydration are not only unpleasant, but you won’t think or shoot properly. I always carry a couple of small water bottles in my truck for this reason. Stimulants such as caffeine can work well at waking you up, but they are not a universal panacea. The effects of such things diminish with use – as they say, there is…

“This wood intuition was screaming at me that there were deer in the wood” At last, we have had a respite from the wind and rain and snow has arrived with the temperature dropping. For many that would not be the best of news, however, for us it is just what we wanted. The ground cover has, at last, collapsed and the improved sight lines through the woodland gives us the opportunity to see the wily roe deer before they see us – that always helps! I am now seeing deer in groups in some areas, usually in quiet woodlands that give shelter from the wind – so that is where we will be heading for in the next few weeks to try and catch up on numbers. Knowing the…

New Year’s Day came as a shock to us. We were staying at the boss’s sister’s and Alfie stays in the back of the truck. He is quite happy that he is with us rather than being kennelled with our other four dogs. He is taken out regularly and unusually for him he is on a lead. I woke up on New Year’s Day and went to the vehicle to walk the big lad, opened the back and no Alfie! I am sure you can imagine the feelings and thoughts that started to rush through my head. The odd thing was that his truck kennel door had been bolted shut. Now, I have always said Alfie is a clever dog, however, he is not clever enough to relock the kennel…

“Taking a dog into the beating line can do wonders to restore its confidence” Avery common question we get asked at Gamegoer is: “How old should my dog be before I get him in the shooting field?” In truth, this is always a difficult one to answer as it depends on so many different things; the dog’s level of training, the dog’s personality (is it a bold type of a dog or is it a more sensitive type?) and of course the owner’s level of experience. However, at some point the day will come that you will have to take the plunge and take the dog out and let it experience a shoot day. To avoid a total disaster you should first ask yourself the following questions; does your dog…

PROFILE NAME BRENT NORBURY AREA STAHANNA, SCOTLAND MEDIA PENCIL ARTIST PROFESSION DEERSTALKER There I was wandering around the Kelso Deerstalking Fair, when I came across a young man producing a wonderful drawing of two roebucks. I can’t resist drawings of deer, particularly roe deer, but there are very few artists that I have come across that manage to capture the character and movement of these remarkable animals. As many readers of Sporting Gun will know, roe deer have been a passion of mine for many years, and as this artist’s drawing progressed throughout the day, I couldn't resist returning to see the work progress. It soon became obvious that Brent Norbury possessed a very rare talent. Brent was accurately transferring the sights that I always consider myself fortunate to observe…

PROFILE NAME ALICE ARNOLD BASED HEREFORDSHIRE MEDIA ACRYLICS AND PASTELS PROFESSION ARTIST Alice Arnold was brought up in rural Derbyshire and was actively involved with the rural community, being part of Young Farmers and a regular out beating. Her parents were both artists and she was going to go down the same route, getting a place at art college. But she had a year out and spent time as a nanny and groom on a farm in Northumberland and loved the life. “I then went carriage driving in Sark and because I loved rural life so much decided to change tack completely, taking a place at Harper Adams and studying to be a land agent,” Alice said. While there she got a team of spaniels and field trialled them, as…

GUNS adj — adjustable ble — boxlock ejector blne — boxlock non ejector brls — barrels c/w — complete with cyl — cylinder db — double barrel dt — double trigger ej — ejector ex con — excellent condition fac — firearms certificate fc — fixed choke gc — good condition grd — grade hg — hammer gun imp — improved ltwt — lightweight m/c — multi-choke mod — modified o/u — over and under ono — or near offer ovno — or very near offer p/x — part exchange pa — pump action rf — rimfire rnds — rounds (ammunition) sa — semi-automatic sb — single barrel sbs — side by side sle — side lock ejector slne — sidelock no ejector sst — single selective trigger tge —…

It’s heartening to hear that MEP Vicky Ford appears to be listening to BASC and the Countryside Alliance (CA) over proposed changes to the EU’s Firearms Directive. Ms Ford is heading up a study into the proposals. Both organisations want EU politicians to steer clear of knee jerk new gun controls that will make life even harder for UK shooters, who already adhere to some of the toughest restrictions not just in Europe, but worldwide. Politicians want to tighten gun laws in the EU following the terrorist atrocities in Paris last year. Typically, and true to form, they mistakenly think that heaping more legislation on legitimate gun owners will reduce attacks by militants, Islamic or otherwise, and combat the illegal trafficking of firearms at the same time. What nonsense! Not…