Shooting Times & Country

At this point, I’m not sure if I remember how to take on driven birds at all, but I was lucky this season in that I managed to scrape together a fair bit of shooting. It all ended, happily, with a morning on the Solway followed by a last flight on my

Anti-shooting group Wild Justice has been dealt a fresh financial blow after a judge ordered it to pay legal costs to Natural Resources Wales. The campaign group, led by TV presenter Chris Packham, had hoped to disrupt shooting and gamekeeping by for

Have you tried using steel shot yet in driven game and if so how did you get on? 34% It wasn’t as effective 23% It worked well 31% No noticeable difference 11% A very different thing follow us @shootingtimes Respondents: 145 ■

Who said it: Nick Clarke “The fox hunting class aka the Countryside Alliance have accused me of ‘class war’. I plead guility to the charge” Why: Councillor Clarke revealed his true motivation for proposing a ban on trail-hunting on land owned by

A licensing scheme restricting mountain hare culling will come into force at the end of the month, meaning 28 February will effectively be the permanent end of the open season for the animals in Scotland. The highest densities of mountain hares in Eu

A campaign is under way to stop legal changes that would restrict the use of airguns by young people on private premises. Under the Home Office’s proposed changes to the Firearms Act 1968, airgun users aged between 14 and 17 would need the supervisio

Many thanks for keeping me sane after 13 months of quarantine here, stranded in the Swedish forest and living mainly off venison. I eagerly await your weekly digital edition and devour every word, even the adverts. Keep up the good work. I spent five

Your correspondent Sam Andrews says that “it is well known that springers are a pain in the behind if not fully occupied for 23 hours a day” (Letters, 27 January). I have owned springers for more than 25 years and without exception they have always b

Vital geese culling on the islands of Orkney. Is shooting with one eye closed really a big disadvantage? How to create the right plan for effective predator control. Walking-up woodcock on the last day of the 2020-21 season. ... AND MUCH MORE! ■

ALL THIS newfangled technology does come at a cost and, with a few optional extras fitted, the price creeps up a tad. The on-the-road price for the Jeep Renegade 4xe Trailhawk is £36,500. Fairly eye-watering, but hybrids aren’t cheap. Hopefully, as t

Editor Patrick Galbraith Acting deputy editor Steve Faragher Group art director Dean Usher Art editor Rob Farmer Picture editor Max Tremlett Group production editor Di Cross Production editors Sarah Potts, Nicola Jane Swinney Digital editor Charlot

Old dogs can do daft things. On a recent walk, my elderly springer, Rowan, decided that a swim in the river would be a good idea. She has always been a strong swimmer, but with her 15th birthday fast approaching, she forgets that she is not as good a

I watched the film The Two Popes at the weekend and one particular scene made me think about the content of my penultimate column. The Pope asks Cardinal Bergoglio to hear his confessions, and — while I am in no way comparing myself to the Pope — I a

1 Trying to decoy in thick snow is pointless. Pigeon become snow blind, won’t travel and won’t see decoys properly. 2 You can decoy in a light dusting of snow or when snow is melted, especially over taller green crops such as sprouts, stubble turnip

The past year has been a testing time for all of us. I have always felt grateful for the opportunity to spend time in the countryside with an air rifle and, with the day-to-day grind of lockdown becoming increasingly repetitive, I have appreciated th

BASC’s head of firearms and global authority on guns Airgunner and journalist from the West Country Vintage gun expert, firearms dealer, author and journalist Shooting Times rifle reviewer and stalker Highly regarded writer and ornithologist NGO

If you open a long-stored gun case for a pre-war shotgun, it is not uncommon to find what looks like stripped clumps of old rope. This is jute tow, which was once sold as a material for scrubbing fouling from shotgun barrels. Today, people use kitche

Latin name: Evernia prunastri Common name: Oak moss Other names: Stag lichen How to spot it and where to find it: Look closely at the bark of broadleaf trees on your next woodland walk; you may spy pale, greenish-grey clusters of tufty growth. Th

It hopefully won’t be all that long now until trout fisheries across the country are back open and we can cast our lines once again. The Viva, apparently named after those old Vauxhalls that everyone’s dad seems to have had, is a killer on rainbows a

Most shooters are sociable types. But there are times when a healthy dose of solitude does the soul a power of good. To be alone with the wind and the rain while wildfowling, stalking or foxing is a form of self-reliance. And that is something that i

The use of gundogs will not be affected by a proposed change in the law in Northern Ireland. Alliance MLA John Blair has brought forward a private members’ bill which would ban the use of dogs to hunt mammals in the province. It would also ban trail-

Manufacturer Jeep Model Renegade 4xe Trailhawk Top speed 124mph Power Petrol engine 180hp Electric motor (rear) 60hp 270Nm of torque 0-62mph (secs) 7.1 seconds Emissions (g/km) CO2 51g/km Fuel consumption 128.4mpg Towing weight braked 1,500kg

Check your trailer tyres. New legislation has come into force concerning the requirements for trailer tyres. The rules are complex and will cover many shoot trailers and beaters’ wagons. The CLA advises that “to comply with this new regulation, owner