April 25, 2024
WRITTEN & PHOTOGRAPHED BY SIMON K BARR A few years ago, Steve Hornady and I booked to hunt for mid-Caucasian tur in Russia. It had longbeen an ambition of mine to hunt with Steve. I’d known him for many years, but this would be my first trip with him, having to previously postpone. As Steve…
April 24, 2024
WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY SIMON K BARR Having stealthily crawled to within 30 yards of the group, our faint scent was carried on swirling winds to the herd, which then revealed itself to be far bigger than we had thought. Some 130 Nile buffalo hurtled off with drama and speed, mercifully in the other direction…
April 24, 2024
As I write, I am in between bouts of unloading a van following the annual Stalking Show held at the Staffordshire County Showground. I can genuinely say that it was the best one yet, with a bigger presence and far more to see and do than in previous years. Three halls were chock-full of the…
April 24, 2024
The Cairngorms National Park’s (CNPA) wildfire plan is not credible, says the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA). Muirburn professionals have accused Cairngorms leaders of not having a reasonable wildfire blueprint in place to keep people safe, despite having the 20 years since the park was established to do so. The SGA, whose members have assisted fire…
April 24, 2024
The killing of five people in Plymouth in August 2021 shocked the nation — but in the aftermath did the region’s police overreact in terms of gun licence revocation? The recently published UK Firearm Report revealed which areas have the highest rates of shotgun and firearms ownership, and which have the highest licence revocation rates. …
April 24, 2024
Eat Wild, the development board for British game, is urging shoots to secure routes to market for the birds they shoot ahead of next season. Eat Wild’s Plan for the Plate initiative sets out to encourage shoots to speak to their game dealers in good time. It suggests these early conversations will help game dealers…
April 24, 2024
Police have arrested two men over alleged breaches of Scotland’s new foxhunting legislation. The arrests followed video surveillance and complaints submitted by anti-hunt groups in the Scottish Borders. Officers have investigated six reports of illegal foxhunting since the new law was introduced last October. Police Scotland confirmed that two men, aged 29 and 55, were…
April 24, 2024
Despite huge protests, there are no plans to pause the roll out of Wales’s controversial subsidy scheme for farmers, according to Wales’s new rural affairs secretary, Huw Irranca-Davies. The Welsh government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) is set to be introduced from April 2025. Mr Irranca-Davies claimed “knotty issues” with the plans could be worked out…
April 24, 2024
Thames Water confirmed its waterways are not safe to swim in last week, as it faced claims from television naturalist Steve Backshall that the pollution found in the river was “toxic”. Samples taken by Mr Backshall close to Little Marlow Sewage Treatment Works on the border of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire were analysed by the Bangor…
April 17, 2024
In February, Royal Mail announced that it would be banning the carriage of knives and other bladed items across its delivery network (News, 10 April and 14 February). In March, I wrote to several senior people at Royal Mail raising BASC’s concerns about the planned ban and the impact it would have on hundreds of…
Sponsored by Skinner’s, this week’s dog of the week is Betty. At three months old, Betty is described as a “wonderful, crazy, happy girl, full of fun”, and she will be joining rough shoots next season. She loves to chase everything but hasn’t quite grasped the “leave” command yet… For your dog to be included, email [email protected] a picture and tell us all about them. Featured dogs receive a 15kg bag of food, via Skinner’s.