The Clay Shooting Classic is returning in 2022, and will take place at the fantastic Orston Shooting Ground from 26-29 May 2022. The Clay Shooting Classic is firmly established as one of the highlights of the clay shooting calendar, with a long history of exciting targets, stiff competition and a…
News
Cornwall councillors speak up for hunting
Cornwall Council is likely to rebuff a petition seeking to have trail hunting banned on its land following a vote on 19 January. The official result will not be announced for several weeks, but commentators suggest it is “quite clear” which way it is likely to go. Speaking against the…
Popular beater killed as vehicle falls from bridge
Police said the bridge had collapsed as the vehicle crossed it. The vehicle and trailer are understood to have been carrying members of the shoot’s beating team. A number of other people were seriously injured in the accident, which is reported to have happened around 4.30pm on 18 January during…
The British Shooting Show 2022: Here’s why it’s not to be missed
After a break due to COVID, the popular British Shooting Show will be taking place again on 18th – 20th February 2022 at the NEC in Birmingham. Why it’s worth attending Whether you’re new to shooting or a seasoned shooter, this is the perfect location to make informed decisions about…
Young Shots of the future: Enter the British Schools and Young Shots competition on 30 April 2022 at Orston Shooting Ground
Last year, the keenly anticipated British Schools and Young Shots (BSYS) competition had to be postponed due to Covid. However we are delighted to announce that it will be taking place this year at Orston Shooting Ground in Nottinghamshire on Saturday 30 April 2022. It is the highlight of the…
Burning helps store carbon according to new study
The claim that controlled burning is harmful and causes damaging releases of carbon dioxide has been increasingly used to criticise traditional upland management in recent years, with a focus on the use of muirburn on grouse moors. However, an authoritative new study has demonstrated that properly used, fire can boost…
Firearms licensing system on the verge of collapse due to Covid
Late last year, North Yorkshire Police announced that it would not accept new firearm and shotgun certificate applications and instead will focus exclusively on renewals. Now Thames Valley, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Hampshire Police have adopted the same policy. Based on reports from readers, a number of other forces…
Illegal hare coursing to attract strict new punishments, promise DEFRA
Illegal hare coursing will soon be hit with a range of new powers and penalties after DEFRA announced a crackdown. The move follows a successful campaign by gamekeeper and Shooting Times contributor Ed Coles. (Read this piece on illegal hare coursing here.) Petition: Change the law to increase sentencing for…
Significant changes to general licences
The general licences allow the control of a range of bird species which would otherwise be protected; these include species such as wood pigeons and carrion crows. They were widely seen as uncontroversial and effective and were used by farmers, shoots and conservation bodies. However their legality was challenged by…
Your best New Year Resolution – a subscription to Shooting Times or Sporting Gun
There’s nothing quite like relaxing comfortably in a chair after a long day in the field and sitting down with a favourite fieldsports magazine, whether that’s Shooting Times or Sporting Gun. Cheaper prices The magazines also make a superb presents – and they really are the gift that will carry…
Gamekeeping and wildlife management certificate dropped from education syllabus
Currently around 1,000 students are studying the Level 3 Advanced Technical Certificate, Diploma and Extended Diploma in Land and Wildlife Management. The Level 3 Advanced Technical Certificate is now no longer open to new entrants and it was expected that a similar qualification would be included in the Government’s new…
More than a quarter of UK birds in serious decline
The list, which is drawn up by all the UK’s bird conservation groups including the GWCT, is updated every three years and categorises the status of birds as either red, amber or green. The ‘red list’ of birds of the highest conservation concern has increased in length by three species,…
Ban on snaring could impact fox control efforts, warn gamekeepers
The announcement that the Scottish Government would consider the option of a ban on snaring came in response to a question from Labour’s Colin Smyth MSP. The regional list member for the South of Scotland asked Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform Mairi McAllan about whether the soon to…
Experts warn shooting community of bird flu risks as outbreak worsens
Cases of the most dangerous form of the bird flu disease, referred to as high-path H5N1, were detected in domesticated birds in late October at the same time a spate of cases were noted in wild birds. The disease occurs in a seasonal cycle with distinct peaks in the winter…
Best Cyber Monday Wellies Deals
A pair of wellies by the door is the hallmark of a keen country type and they’re an item of footwear that can get hard wear. So we’ve searched through the best Cyber Monday Wellies deals around online so that you can save £££S on replacing yours – and maybe…
Grouse shooting still supporting economy of rural Scotland despite little actual shooting.
The grouse season in much of Scotland was effectively wiped out by snow and wet weather during the critical grouse breeding season. Many moors had no shooting at all and others had a very limited calendar. This led to average losses of £140,000 per estate this year. But despite this,…
Police slammed for failing to act over mass coursing event
Some shocking footage has emerged of illegal hare-coursing in Bedfordshire this week pic.twitter.com/MCFkQPMdAw — Johann Tasker (@johanntasker) November 12, 2021 Footage posted online shows multiple vehicles and several dozen individuals openly coursing hares in broad daylight. The vehicles are shown being driven across recently drilled crops with individuals hanging out…
Pheasant releases improve biodiversity, research suggests
The paper used data from the poultry register to work out where pheasant releases were taking place and matched it against citizen science data from the NBN Trust. The scientists also identified control areas where no releases were taking place. While the effect on biodiversity of releasing pheasants was unclear,…
Guntrader’s liquidation firm promises to investigate sale of database
As we reported last week, the online gun trading enterprise announced that they were going into liquidation to avoid claims from customers whose data was stolen in a hack. When a company is liquidated, independent experts called liquidators sell its assets and use the income from the sale to pay…
Wild Justice continues to use environmental laws to attack shooting despite multiple defeats
This week the campaign group Wild Justice, whose multiple failed cases have cost the taxpayer tens of thousands of pounds, said they will appeal a ruling which dismissed their legal challenge to the muirburn regulations in England. The case was summarily dismissed as “not arguable” on any of its grounds…