Learning how to call muntjac deer can be a deadly tactic but you need a strategy, stealth and a good call, writes Graham Downing
Stalking
Deer stalking is a sporting pastime, but it is also essential to protect forestry and valuable agricultural crops. Deer breed prolifically and suffer from starvation and disease unless they are culled.
To this end, landowners and stalkers usually work in close co-operation with one another to create a plan that balances the welfare of the deer against the damage they can cause if allowed to breed unchecked.
Laws and advice
The responsible stalker will know and understand all the laws applicable to the sport and will act with safety as a primary concern.
Shooting UK regularly publishes articles by experts covering every aspect of the sport, from deer stalking rifles, scopes, maintenance, ammunition and safety.
We’ve published advice on getting your deer stalking certificate too and how to study for it.
We also regularly review stalking clothing and new product launches.
Finally, we are great believers in eating what you shoot and there’s not much more delicious than fresh venison. So you’ll also find a selection of venison-based recipes too.
Freshly cooked venison
When you’re out deer stalking how can you deal with walkers who criticise what you’re doing?
Dealing with walkers?: While I was out stalking recently, I was accosted by a walker who let fly a torrent of abuse and accusations. This person accused me of "murdering beautiful creatures, ruining the countryside and posing a danger to honest walkers".
English and Welsh Roe Review 2018
English roe had a good year in 2018. After reporting an increased number of heads presented for measuring in 2017 — the best on record — we were prepared for a slower year in 2018. Reports from stalkers across the country were suggesting lower numbers of quality bucks. As so…
Scottish Roe Review 2018 – the CIC tables
More than half a century ago, when Shooting Times started publishing annual reviews, if you stalked a roe north or south of the border that was felt to have made the grade, you would see your name on the very small list of bucks from across the UK that had…
All about muntjac
Small, secretive and constantly on the move, the muntjac is a challenging quarry for the deer stalker. Little bigger than a springer spaniel, it offers a difficult target among the thick undergrowth that it prefers to live in. Although its antlers are simple things, usually not more than a couple…
Can you use a thermal-imaging device to shoot deer?
If deer numbers are becoming such a problem in parts of England and Wales why can't we get easy permission to shoot them (as they do in Scotland) with a lamp at night?
What really is ‘essential’ kit for deer stalking?
Deer stalking: I have attended a Deer Management Qualification where I noticed people coming along with all sorts of 'essential' gadgets. What would you say is really essential for someone new to stalking?
7 of the best places to stalk red stags in Scotland
Heading off to stalk red stags in Scotland is a bucket-list experience for most stalkers. One of the country’s most majestic animals, the red deer is Scotland’s largest native land mammal and one of its most sought-after sporting trophies. The majority are found in the Scottish Highlands and islands, and there is a wide variety of stalking ground…
Shooting deer near houses. Is it legal?
Deer have moved into my area and are coming into the garden, damaging plants and vegetables. How high a fence will I need to keep the little ******* out?
How to pass your DSC1
Charles Smith-Jones tells you how to prepare yourself to pass your DSC1 and face the assessments with confidence
How to be a deer stalker
I have just passed my DSC Level 1 and want to progress and learn more about deer. Would it help if I joined one of the specialist groups and, if so, which should it be – the British Deer Society or the St. Hubert Club?
Stalking muntjac – a real sporting challenge
The diminutive muntjac deer arrived in Britain in 1900 as a plaything of the 11th Duke of Bedford who added it to his deer park at Woburn Abbey. Rumour has it that the Duke was so fond of this little species that he engineered a series of clandestine releases, driving…
Tips to improve your rifle shooting and markmanship
As we drift towards the summer, most game seasons have closed. Your stalking kit has been cleaned and stowed away, and you’ll likely see more venison on the barbecue than under a cross-hair for the next few months. Shooting is a perishable skill We all have a responsibility to be…
English and Welsh roe review 2017 and other species
The CIC’s trophy measuring system has had another good year. Newly qualified UK measurers got into their stride throughout 2017 at home and at shows around the country. And senior members of the UK Trophy Evaluation Board (TEB) attended the International TEB in Budapest last September to assess, along with…
Scottish roe review 2017
With a score of 175.93, K. Mehl’s Aberdeenshire trophy took top honours for Scotland in 2017, maintaining that county’s place as one of the country’s great roe hunting territories. However, this year it was eclipsed, numerically at least, in the top 10 heads by its principal competitors, Angus, Fife and…
Should deer stalkers have to be qualified?
Soon after I accepted my first invitation to shoot in Germany, a small package arrived. Inside were the instructions and forms required before I would be allowed to join the shoot. These included letters proving insurance, in both English and German, passport photos, copies of a firearms licence and a…
Roe deer hunting – the five minute cull
We are in the thick of the doe season as I write and trying to catch up the numbers on one estate. Parts of this ground can be quite disturbed with walkers and people enjoying time in the woodland. It also has two good shoots that run from November to…
2019 deer seasons
Red deer England and Wales: Aug 1-April 30 (stags) Nov 1 – Mar 31 (hinds) Scotland: July 1-Oct 20 (stags) Oct 21-Feb 15 (hinds) Northern Ireland: Aug 1-April 30 (stags) Nov 1-March 31 (hinds) Sika deer England and Wales: Aug 1-April 30 (stags) Nov 1 – March 31 (hinds)…
Do we rely on scopes too much?
I once went out on the hill with an old stalker who bemoaned the use of bipods. This struck me as odd, because I would have thought using bipods meant fewer missed shots and, more importantly, fewer wounded beasts. But according to him, in using a bipod, his guests tended…
The 6.5mm Creedmoor round – why stalkers are talking about it
Q: I keep hearing about a new round called the 6.5mm Creedmoor and friends say it is the best cartridge for deer. Is that true? A: The 6.5 Creedmoor is one of the new wave of cartridges designed to get the best possible ballistics from an efficient case design. The…