Record heat fails to dampen partridge season optimism

The partridge season opened with optimism last week after months of intense work through what the Met Office has provisionally called “the hottest summer on record” for the UK.

Water dominated preparations, forcing many estates to change their routines completely. John Queen, head keeper at Linhope Estate in Northumberland, tripled his team’s monitoring efforts, checking systems three or four times daily.

The hottest summer on record

“Water became a big issue because extreme dryness is as bad as being wet – both cause stress, and stress leads to disease,” Mr Queen explained. His team worked extended hours from 5am until dark, manually carrying water to upland areas, but the effort has paid off.

“Because of the lads’ hard work with the water, I’m optimistic about the condition of our birds,” Mr Queen said. “They’re in tip-top condition and eating really well. They’re going to be a challenge to handle but also a challenge to shoot because they’re fit.”

Impact on cover and wild game

The drought’s impact varied across terrains and local conditions. Game cover results were mixed, with some keepers facing crop failures that required quick action.

Jed Batten, gamekeeper at Manningford Estate in Wiltshire, reported: “My game cover’s come on nicely, but I know a lot of people have had to get backup mixes this year and broadcast seed themselves – they’ve had to put that in where their original crops failed.”

Successful replanting required precise timing. “You need to get the seed in at just the right moisture levels, which is hard to achieve,” Mr Batten added.

On the upside, wild populations have been a real success story. Tim Weston, also a Wiltshire keeper and the NGO’s director of environment, policy and politics, confirmed that “while game covers haven’t done well, on the flip side wild game has thrived, especially partridge”.

Optimism prevails