Innholdsfortegnelse for May_2016 i Sporting Gun

One of the great things about stalking is that there is always more to learn This month we’ve got a special treat for anyone interested in stalking – a free stalking guide. It is mainly aimed at those of you have had little or no experience, and I hope this might tempt you to have a go. The day I took up stalking was life-changing, and I don’t think I’d have ended up here if I hadn’t been lucky enough to have had a great mentor. There’s loads of useful information in it, including a brief explanation of the six different deer species in the UK, how to get some experience, what kit you’ll need, how to gralloch and much more besides. Many of you are, of course, seasoned stalkers,…

“The semi-auto Marocchi mounted like most off-the-peg over-and-unders” This Marocchi SI 12 semi-auto, supplied by Viking, is a gun that has had very little press in the UK - it should have, though. The company was founded by Stefano Marocchi in 1922. In the early days, the business made high-class components for side-by-side guns, then in the late 50s made an early cO2 operated semi-auto rifle, after which an O/U was developed, with which one of the family members had a a lot of success with at the European Clay Shooting Championships. With these developments the company started to be more diverse, not only in what it was producing, but the technology it used in these areas. In 2007, the company obtained a European quality certification, which it earned from…

“The majority of the crows snuck in over the hedge making for some difficult catch-up shots” Like most Sporting Gun readers, my busiest time of year by far is the shooting season. This is due to the many days on pheasants: beating, loading, picking-up and shooting, not to mention trying to get out on to the foreshore as much as possible. By the time the end of the season comes round, I’m ready for a break and a change in pace. This year, it was great to spend a nice sunny cold day sitting in a hide watching the world go by while shooting the odd crow and pigeon. Tricky timings The problem with decoying crows at the end of the season around these parts is finding somewhere to go.…

Just because the shooting season is over, it doesn’t mean that the gun should be locked away for months. On the Honeycombe shoot, I like to organise roostshooting days on every Saturday in February, and if there are good numbers of woodpigeon about, maybe have a day or two in March. I have been doing this for several years now and it has proved very popular. The days I run attract the full spectrum of shooting folk-from the Tweeded sportsman to the camouflaged youth. Once a common feature Organised roost shoots used to be a common feature of the British countryside, but perhaps with land usage changing or being broken up into smaller parcels it can be hard to arrange them. While I fully appreciate that some keepers and shoot…

Although wild pheasants are still flourish in some parts of East Anglia, Lincolnshire and the North East, working out the status of wild pheasant numbers is very difficult these days because of the large numbers of birds that are released each summer. In fact, it is very unlikely that there are any pheasants in Britain now that could truly be called wild. Historically, wild pheasants have fared best in the eastern counties where there is less rainfall, a high proportion of the land is cultivated and there is a long history of traditional gamekeeping. Like many farmland birds, wild pheasants suffered from the 1960s onwards because of a loss of habitat on farms – in particular the lack of insect food for the hungry young chicks. High mortality In more…

I was recently asked to review the hand held NiteSite SpotterXtreme from the perspective of the fox hunter. I was a little sceptical at first, because – like so many others – I was worried about the way the glare from the screen lights up the user. Things didn’t start off well when we took it out for its maiden voyage – my shooting partner Paul and I found that we couldn’t see anything. A bit of head-scratching lead to the realisation that you have to hold the device as though it’s pointing downhill. Although this was a bit disconcerting, we soon got used to it. The controls are nice and simple – exactly what you need when you’re out in the cold and clad in thick gloves. There’s an…

Now the shooting season is a few months behind us it is time to look at some of the bad habits that the dogs may have developed during the closing weeks of the season. Even the best trained gundog will start to get sloppy and issues such as running in, dropping or swapping retrieves, turning a deaf ear to whistle commands will all manifest themselves. As handlers, we are also to blame as we start out with good intentions of keeping our dogs tight and under control and as December and January come along we also start to get lax – so going back to basics not only re-focuses the dog it also helps us get some discipline back into our handling. Dropping retrieves Before you can start to work…

It happens to all of us occasionally, and on this bright, sunny morning with a gale of wind booming round the house, I thought I would amuse myself – and hopefully you, too – by looking at the more common reasons for an “inexplicable” miss. When you first begin to shoot a rifle and have mastered the techniques, either from experience and reading or from a bit of good training, misses are very rare. They become more likely as you gain confidence and perhaps relax a little too much, forgetting that a rifle is a precision instrument requiring careful and consistent management. Any decent rifle can hit an old sixpence at 50 yards range – as long as the man behind the trigger doesn’t mess it up. So let’s have…

Here we are having arrived at my in-laws again, Alfie this time is staying with us in the house. After his last adventure he has obviously got used to the idea. As I took him out of the car for a walk before entering the house he stopped at the door and would not go on without much persuasion. On the way back he stopped at the door and had no intention of returning to the car. We entered the house and he immediately dashed around picking up every dog toy around, there are a lot at my sister-in-laws! He proudly paraded around before settling down next to me on the sofa, I was on the sofa, but he did decide he fancied the idea and joined me. I think…

PROFILE NAME JASON LOWES AREA WEARDALE, CO DURHAM MEDIA GOUACHE AND WATER COLOURS PROFESSION ARTIST Jason Lowes, from County Durham excelled at art at school, coming out with the top grade in his year. It was obvious therefore that he should go on to study art afterwards, going to college to study graphic design. Numerous jobs followed including building and a stint as a miner before he started a job designing crystal figurines made from Swarovski lead crystal. But this was a job rather than a career and in 2000 he decided it was time to go back to his original loves – art and wildlife – and strike out on his own. “I set up on my own with the help of the enterprise allowance scheme, which paid me…

Anew genre has entered the world of science fiction in the past 20 years or so. Termed “steampunk”, it depicts a fantasy world where the internal combustion engine was never invented, World War 1 never happened and Great Britain still rules the world under the might of the industrial revolution (I did say fantasy). People still rely on coal, steam and clockwork to power and animate their world instead of the micro-processor of today. Electricity is present, but only when produced by intricate mechanical micro-generators run on fossil fuels; I suppose best described as the natural progression Victorian inventiveness would have taken if certain events had not occurred. All science fiction? Most certainly, but the part about Victorian inventiveness is very true. Take this wonderful combination revolving rifle-shotgun that came…

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 —…

There’s much to take on board when starting stalking. For a start – money. You don’t have to blow a fortune if you spend sensibly on a rifle, scope, ammunition, clothing, sticks and other accessories. However, you also need to factor in a (recommended) DSC1 examination, and a butchery and carcase preparation course. All is money well spent. But what next? Even if you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to go stalking without paying ground rent, do you really feel competent enough to go solo and muddle through the best you can? Tempted to try? Don’t! If we were talking here about shotguns, not rifles, the main consideration would be learning how to handle a gun safely, and accurately. In other words, you would need to pay for…

Q What calibre rifle do I need to buy first? A The minimum legal calibre for deer in England and Wales is .240, which probably helps explain why, for many years, the .243 has been first choice for many people. It’s a potent rifle when matched to the right bullet, but there are other calibres that many argue are better suited to all-round deer work. And I tend to agree – even though a .243 (which I do still use) was the first centrefire I bought. It’s a superbly accurate rifle for foxing work with 60 to 70gr bullets and more than up to the job of killing small deer cleanly like roe and muntjac with slightly heavier payloads. However, 100gr is about its limit, which, for some stalkers, isn’t…

Homer Simpson once said: “Beer, the cause and cure of all life’s problems”. As a pigeon shooter, I tend to look at oilseed rape in the same light. There is no doubt that, since it was first grown in this country more than 50 years ago, it has enabled pigeon populations to grow at an alarming rate. Whereas vast numbers of woodies would perish from starvation in harsh winters, they now survive comfortably, thanks to the universal availability of rape. But this has brought it’s own problems for the decoyer, who now finds it almost impossible to make a decent bag once farmers have educated the birds by using gas guns and rockets. We do our best to minimise the damage caused, but the fact remains that birds will get…

Place: Monckton Shooting Ground, Hunsley Road, North Newbald, Beverley, Yorks YO43 4TW. Easy to find? I normally have a good sense of direction, read the ground’s website instructions – and promptly got lost. For 20 minutes or more, I really wondered if the locals had ever turned the road signs back the right way after the World War II. I stumbled on the place by pure good luck. To avoid the same fate, download the map and key the postcode into a sat nav. The best I can say is that the ground is one mile from the High Hunsley junction on the B1230 as you head toward Beverely from the York direction. 3 Disciplines: An awesomely high tower, the most comprehensive grouse/partridge flush you will ever encounter, a Compak…

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…

More mature readers will recall cinema rituals of the 1960s. Before the main feature screened, low budget advertisments (inevitably flagging a curry house ‘just around the corner from this cinema’) were followed by the crowing cockerel of Pathé News. Pathé’s newsreels and documentaries were a staple for cinema audiences from 1910 to 1970. Reports covered major world events and famous people, but also the minutiae of everyday life – including sporting activities such as shooting, hunting, fishing and gundog trialling. The British Pathé archive holds more than 90,000 films and 12million stills – all are now freely available to view on the internet. So take a trip down memory lane and explore this marvellous collection – however I must warn you that viewing is dangerously addictive. I set aside a…

Minsters split over Brexit WHILE AGRICULTURAL ministers are split over a possible Brexit, shooters have less to worry about, according to industry leaders. The 23 June in-out referendum on the UK’s continued membership in the European Union (EU) could have consequences for agriculture and the environment, however it would have little major impact on UK firearms ownership. Liam Stokes, head of shooting campaigns at the Countryside Alliance, said: “We know that firearms legislation in the UK is among the strictest and tightest in the world, and certainly exceeds what is required by the EU Firearms Directive, so regardless of the referendum result, firearms law would be broadly unaffected. “A great deal of conservation legislation is driven by the EU via the Bird and Habitats Directives, but how a ‘leave’ vote…

Snaring can be a very successful way of controlling rabbits. For me, it is another weapon in my armoury that can help me deal with those rabbits that are in very difficult situations. I have a set procedure for dealing with rabbits. The first step is always the rifle or air rifle in conjunction with the lamp, but this isn’t always possible due to houses and roads. At this point, I would reach for the ferrets and purse nets, but, again, sometimes this isn’t always possible – especially if the rabbits are travelling from sets along busy roads, which could be dangerous to your ferrets. This is the point when I reach for the snares. I would always suggest when gaining a new permission or contract that you take the…

“As far as I'm concerned, nothing must be allowed to rattle, bang or clank” Whenever foxing equipment is discussed, most people seem to focus on the big stuff – night-vision devices, thermal images and so on. There is no question, however, that all the little things are just as important. Discovering a battery has gone flat , or finding that you’ve left your cleaning cloth behind when your lenses mist up can ruin a great night out. The problem is that if you were to take everything you could possible need, you wouldn’t be able to move. Everyone who starts out is at risk of accumulating more bits and pieces than they really need – I was certainly guilty of this. The problem is working out exactly what is vital…

ADJUSTABLE PIGEON SHOOTING FOLDING SEAT This British made seat is comfortable, lightweight, height adjustable and collapsible. It’s strong with a padded seat and a 6in ground spike. Price: £37 Web: www.ukshootwarehouse.com SOLOGNAC KAMO-BR HUNTING TRIPOD Lightweight and fold down tripod stool. Easily transportable with a shoulder strap at a very good price, guaranteed for two years. Price: £39.99 Web: www.decathlon.co.uk PIGEON SHOOTING SPIN SEAT WITH BAG This camo covered seat spins and has a carrying bag. It has three external pockets for all your extras and has an adjustable shoulder strap. Price: £22 Web: www.huntingsolutions.co.uk DPM CAMO HUNTING SWIVEL SEAT With a spinning seat, which is weight activated, this four legged seat is padded and sturdy and very comfortable, It folds for easy storage with a strap…

Probably no other working dog causes such a division of opinion, the lurcher truly is a “Marmite” breed of dog, you either love it or you hate it. However, despite the hugely varying viewpoints there is no doubt that a well-trained lurcher is a very versatile countryside companion and in the right hands it can still provide great sport and still undertake the traditional role of being a “pot-filler”. It is believed that the word “lurcher” is derived from the Romany word “lur” which means thief and “cur” meaning a mixed dog breed The first mention of a lurcher type dog in print was in 1668 and then in 1670 an Act of Charles II, which authorises gamekeepers to seize “Gunns, Bowes, Greyhounds, setting dogs, Lurchers or other dogs to…

During the roe buck season, May is one of my favourite times to be out and about to see what is happening, especially around the first couple of hours starting at dawn. In Northumberland, our bucks will not be in summer coat, although there will be one or two just starting the change, which will progress throughout the month until they have made that miraculous transition. The beautiful fox-red coat starts to change at the neck and legs first. They can look pretty tatty, which may lead the hunter to think that particular animal is not in its normal condition for the time of year. In the vast majority of bucks, this will not be the case. However, observation of the animal before despatch is an important consideration to the…

As I write this I am still on the doe season and as mentioned last month it has been a tough one. The weather hasn’t improved, wind and rain area the norm and we are trying to take every opportunity to catch up. I am getting similar reports from others about the weather changing movement, but we will keep at it. Regarding the deer, we are seeing a number of bucks appear, some old adversaries, many have grown antlers although all are still in velvet to date. The new buck season is looking promising.…

By the time you will be reading this, it will be just five years since Sporting Gun first asked me to take an interest in gun auctions. In the annals of shooting journalism that’s not long, but it has nevertheless been a fascinating period for me and, I hope, for you, too. Thanks to the help from Britain’s leading auction houses, we have been able to explore the world of guns and rifles that are special in one way or another. Sometimes it’s because of their great age; it could be that the gun’s design was innovative, or that the gun was a beautiful tribute to a team of master craftsmen. However, some of the most fascinating stories were about guns that were owned by famous personalities. Take one of…

I might be wrong, but experience suggests that most newcomers come into deer management through a process best described as “natural progression”. Many, for instance, already enjoy using a shotgun in the field and have had their interest in deer whether by a friend who stalks or they shoot over land that supports a head of deer, which the owner wants controlling. Still more come into stalking because they use a .22 or .17 rimrifle for vermin control, or they successfully lamp foxes at night with a small calibre centrefire and want a new challenge. But don’t worry if you fit neither of these categories and have little, or no, knowledge of rifles. It might take a little longer to get started and find your feet, but there are a…

Sound moderator: can be extremely useful, but isn’t essential. Remember that a sound-moderator counts as a firearm, so you must have one listed on your certificate. Stalking sticks and/or bipod: find what works for you, and the terrain you are hunting in. Latex gloves: great for gralloching, will keep your hands clean and mean there is less likelihood of contaminating the carcase. First-aid kit and paperwork: have a waterproof carrier for your firearms certificate and the permission for the area with you. Torch/head torch: if you are likely to be gralloching in half light, or walking back in the dark, this can be essential. Mobile: you should always have a way of contacting someone in case of an emergency, though do remember that you won’t always have a signal where…

The stalker’s main responsibility is to achieve a clean shot in a vital area of the deer’s body. This ensures a clean and humane kill, which means the animal is despatched as quickly, painlessly and as stress free as possible. A wounded deer with a long follow-up is not what any deerstalker wants to experience. A clean kill should be our only consideration, and an accurate chest shot will always hit and destroy one or more of the major organs. Minimising meat damage should never take priority over a humane kill. Head or neck shots are used by some stalkers to minimise meat damage. The kill zone is far tighter on the smaller species, and there will be a far less obvious trail, or none at all, if you get…

With spring around once more, wherever possible, every shooter and conservationist should be making an effort towards the very necessary job of vermin control. Limiting predation on eggs and chicks during this critical reproduction time is the only practical way to help next season’s game prospects and boost wild songbird numbers. Once you’ve got your first decoy bird, magpies are a doddle to catch with the Larsen trap, but their cousin, the carrion crow, is more wary. Catching up with the odd trap-shy bird or two can be a real pain, but if you can find the time – and a good alarm clock – ambushing their regular early-morning perching spots can be a great help. A combined outcome I love getting out and about early at this time of…

When I was growing up I used to spend a lot of my school holidays with my grandparents in a small rural village in Kent. Next door lived an old man called Bert, he was a cowman on a local farm, but what he didn’t know about the countryside just simply wasn’t worth knowing. Bert taught me how to find bird nests, look for slowworms underneath pieces of corrugated sheeting and he introduced me to the world of “chasing rabbits” with dogs. Now I say chasing rather than catching, because at the time he had a German shepherd dog, and although she was a really keen rabbiter she never managed to catch anything, but in my mind she was the best running dog ever, and I always lived in hope…

Keep your dogs topped up on shoot days > After a season packed with great days out in the field with great company, we come to the last day of the season. This was a walked up day and to make the most of the day we covered a lot of ground to try and seek out those canny birds that had made it this far into the season. At this point I should introduce Jack, my three-year-old springer spaniel, this was Jack’s first full year and he has done me proud, working the thickest of cover and working the hedges and woodlands, going were most wouldn’t dare. The last day of the season was no different and he worked as hard as usual. We got to the last drive…

At the time of writing, the 2015/2016 gameshooting season has just drawn to a close. With the shoot days reflected on and evaluated, we are now concentrating on jobs to do in preparation for spring at the Northern School of Game and Wildlife. At the end of January, some shoots cease feeding until the poults arrive in the summer in order to save money. This means that a food source that has been relied on by a big proportion of game and farmland birds disappears suddenly during some of the coldest and hardest months of the year. For this reason we will continue filling some hoppers in the drives with wheat well into the spring until more natural food becomes available. Feeding helps the birds maintain condition up to, and…

Lens cloth: This is absolutely vital if you use night-vision of any kind Batteries: I carry spare ones for infra-red illuminators, thermal imager, camera, torch and caller remote control Extra gloves: There’s no telling when your gloves will get wet, so carry spares. Phone: This is vital, not only so I can talk to my shooting partner if he’s out of sight, but also for basic safety reasons. Mouth caller: If there’s no time to set the electronic caller up, I occasionally resort to my BestFoxCall. Caller remote control: This lives in a special pocket high up on my left shoulder – both so that it’s out of the way and so it's far enough off the ground to reach the caller. Things left in the truck Caller batteries: My…

These days it’s sad to see that most of the population is somewhat distanced from the reality of managing the countryside. Far too many see the countryside in a Disney-like fashion, with every creature living in harmony with one another. This simply is not the case. If there are too many of one species another will suffer. So to maintain a balance, us humans need to intervene. True conservation Conservation is very much at the forefront of the public’s mind these days, which is great. Sadly, though, they are often kept in the dark about the fact that conservation requires the culling of certain species to aid other species. This, of course, needs to be combined with habitat creation and management. Many conservation groups keep their pest control activities low…

Cara was pretty popular among the boys in the syndicate. Good looking and biddable, with a Marilyn Monroe walk, she always brought a smile to their faces, no matter the weather or the quality of the shooting. Some of them even dreamed about taking her home – then who could resist a Labrador bitch that could hunt a runner like she could? So, when she came into season, the team harangued her owner that it would be a terrible waste if she did not produce at least one litter of pups. In the excitement, things got a bit rushed. Pre-breeding health checks were forgotten. A sire was located close by. Bit of a brute actually, but what the heck! And the litter of 10 duly arrived. All was well until…

Venison provencale Ingredients 1½lb diced venison 2oz butter 1tbsp oil 2 onions, chopped 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 tin chopped tomatoes 1tbsp tomato puree ½ pint dry white wine 4oz mushrooms, sliced 1 green pepper, de-seeded and sliced 1 stock cube How to cook Melt the butter with the oil in a frying pan and add the onions and garlic. Fry gently until the onions have softened. Remove from the pan and then brown the meat in the same pan. Add the onion mixture and the tomatoes, puree and wine. Cover and bring to the boil, turn down the heat and simmer until the meat is tender. Crumble in the stock cube and add the mushrooms and pepper. Stir and cook for about another 15 minutes until the pepper is…

Serves: Ingredients 4 hare legs (one per portion) 4tbsp rock salt 1 tbsp cracked black pepper 600ml v egetable oil Filling from 4 large pork sausages 40g pistachio nuts, chopped 4 large prunes, chopped 1tbsp chopped par sley 1 measure brandy Salt and pepper 8 slices Parma ham 250g puff pastry 1 egg, beaten Vegetables 2 large carrots, diced 400g diced sweet potato ½ small cabbage , chopped 1tbsp chopped sage COOKING TIME : 3.25 hours COOKING METHOD 1 The pie filling is prepared in advance and refrigerated, so that baking and serving the pie takes no more than 20 minutes – ideal for a home cook with limited time. In order to minimise wastage we’ve used the hare legs, assuming the saddle and loin are needed for another dish.…

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 Two Webley & Scott Model 700 sbs, both vgc, one with 30in barrels, the other has 28in barrels, both PoW stocks and twin triggers and ejectors, unmarked silver ovals in stocks, could be classes as a matched pair, £1,500 for both. Tel 07772 433137 (Leicestershire). Gunmark Kestralm 20-bore, db, ej, 27in barrels, gc, nice tidy gun, ideal for beginner, £250. Tel 07960 921849 (Oxfordshire/ Northamptonshire border). AYA 25 sle, 14.5in stock, ½ and ¼ chokes, vgc, 1,050 ovno. Also AYA no. 2, 26in barrels, ½ and ¼ chokes, 14.5in stock, vgc, £650 ovno. Also Armas, 20-bore, 26in barrels, 14.25in stock, vgc,…

REMINGTON CTI Most second-hand guns have something to commend them, and even one that’s had a really hard life, yet is still in proof and safe, may be worth buying if the price is right. So it is rare indeed for me to suggest that a particular gun might best be avoided. Make no mistake, the Remington CTi was, and is, safe. That’s not the point: the fact is that the suffered a problem that is not exactly rare among semi-autos. It was cartridge-sensitive. Not just a little bit, but a lot. The gun was introduced in 2006, and Remington said it was made to celebrate 100 years of auto-loading shotguns. It has to be admitted that the concept was great, and one of the big selling points was that…

It’s heartening to hear BASC’s Green Shoots Mapping project is growing at an encouraging pace. Since its creation four years ago nearly 2,500 shoots have signed up to the system, and more are joining all the time. The association is pleased as punch that the amount of land being monitored under GSM amounts to a mind boggling 450,000 hectares — double the area of all the UK’s national nature reserves put together. That’s one heck of an achievement! The computer programme allows shoots, farmers and individual shooters to log all sorts of useful information about the land being shot over. Most importantly it encourages people to record the rich variety of wildlife found on their patch of soil so that it can be shown how shooting brings big benefits to…

To stalk you’ll need a rifle and to get one of those you need a firearm certificate. You have an absolute right to a certificate subject to meeting three criteria: you must not be a prohibited person, you must demonstrate a good reason and you must not be a threat to public safety or the peace. A prohibited person is anyone who has been sentenced to three months or more in prison. The prohibition is either five years or for life, though prohibitions can be overturned by the crown or Sheriff court. That’s the messy bit and will apply to few, if any, Sporting Gun readers. Stalking is a good reason for getting a rifle, but you will need to be able to prove intent to the police. Ideally you…

The UK offers the stalker the opportunity of six species, some of the greatest variety in Europe. Red and roe are indigenous. Fallow, while not strictly native, are very long established, while sika, muntjac and Chinese water deer are introductions that have developed wild self-sustaining populations over the past century. Across the length and breadth of the country, these six offer a variety of challenges to test the ability, fieldcraft and stamina of stalkers, from the lush lowground pastures of the south to the often hostile environment of the highlands. SIKA DEER Male: Stag Female: Hind Young: Calf Average sizes: stags 64kg; hinds 42kg. Open Seasons: England and Wales: stags 1 August to 30 April; hinds 1 November to 31 March. Scotland: stags 1 July to 20 October; hinds 21…

STEP 1 Suspend the carcase from a tree by its hind legs. To bleed the carcase, insert the knife into the V that the clavicle forms from the sternum, keeping the blade parallel to the backbone. Make one small sideways cut and remove the knife. STEP 2 Once the blood has stopped running, remove the carcase from the tree, lie it on its back in a clean area and cut the penis off the carcase. To separate penis and scrotum make small cuts either side of the urethra. Hold the end of the penis with one hand and pull it to keep the skin that is being cut tight. Follow the urethra with the knife to the scrotum and beyond, until the urethra doubles back into the pelvis. On a…