Understanding
breeds tolerance
LIke many other readers I could only look in amazement at the photo on your
letters page (June issue - Proper Red Letter Day!) What a day! To be truthful, I
wish I could have been there. In my part of the world, I sometimes wonder if we
have 1,500 woodpigeon in the whole of Pembrokeshire!
But a few moments later the old grey brain cells started to light up. I’m 64
(almost) and still have my faculties (just!). As a shooter, I fully understand the
need for crop protection and, bearing in mind the woodpigeons’ success sto
as a breeding species, I was not phased by the number of slain in the photo.
But what if a non-shooting person had picked up the magazine and seen t
photograph? With the recent publicity over the general licence debacle in
England, with Wild Justice, what might our non-shooting person think?
Slaughter! Why shoot so many?
We will never satisfy the real antis with any reasoning such as legitimate p
control of a sustainable species, but I honestly believe that the majority of the
British people are ambivalent towards shooting.
Perhaps a few more words of explanation might help. Such as: The birds
had been building up for a few weeks – how many? 5,000? 10,000?
A lot of crops protected: how about acreage and the monetary cost to the
farmers of these crops being devastated by pigeons?
And finally, what happened to the shot birds? Hopefully, they went into the
food chain. A worthy end to a noble quarry.
There are many things I don’t agree with but mostly I am tolerant. If we want
the non-shooting public to be tolerant of our activities, at least they need to be
aware of why we do it. Understanding breeds tolerance.
Mike Thomas-Palmer, Pembrokeshire
THE EDITOR REPLIES: Thank you for your well-argued letter. I agree, in light
of the general licences furore, that more could have been made of the critical
crop protection message. However, this was written and printed before the
licences were revoked and the issue became such a sensitive one.
I would add that generally speaking in all our pigeon articles with Andy Crow,
we are careful to explain which crops are being protected and why – it is a
central theme to the
articles. And the fact is,
we are a shooting
magazine, aimed at
shooters who, like you,
want to know about such
stories. In many ways you
could argue that pictures
like this serve to
emphasise exactly why
we need to control
pigeons – think of the
damage these birds
would wreak on a
farmer’s crop.
However, I do take
your point that more
could have been made
of this fact in the letter,
for those that might seek
to use such pictures
against us.
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A NLARG^S O OS RAW,O WATPAPERANDSU TABAM G SAVA LAB.S CLLTDA .CO.UKPlas-tastic!I was heartened to read your article last month about the
fibre vs plastic debate. Our community is always under fire in the media, and I personally think that because of this it is
very important that we do all we can to be beyond criticism. Constantly using the conservation argument to
defend shooting while simultaneously firing plastic into the countryside does seem a little hypocritical, even to me as a
lifelong shooter, and I think it is only a matter of time before the antis clock onto this and begin using it against us.
us in a very strong position. We do so much good for the If we can sort the problem first off our own backs, it puts
countryside, it would be a shame if something like plasticwads, which is an avoidable issue, were to ruin it. Similar to the way that raptor persecution undermines
the good gamekeepers do for the moors, plastic wads have the same potential to undermine the good our
gamekeepers and shoot owners do for the countryside on lower grounds.
the case already, and that several cartridge manufacturers It’s fantastic to hear that people in the community are on
are working towards a solution that will satisfy everyone. News like this makes me very proud to be a shooter!
John P. Pinkworth, CumbriaSomething to get off your chest? Shoot us a line by post or emailWRITE TO Letters, Sporting Shooter, Evolution House, 2-6 Easthampstead Road,
Wokingham, Berkshire, RG40 2EG EMAIL [email protected]The Seeland Weston Club Classic Waistcoat is a great all-round waistcoat for the sporting shooter. It features large cartridge pockets, reinforced shoulder patches and a back game pocket, making it ideal for both clay and game shooting.
Available in sizes S-5XL in classic pine green. See http://www.seeland.com for details
I thought readers might like to see the results of a great day’s pigeon shooting had on our shoot here in North Hampshire last summer.
if it would be possible to hit the 1,000 mark. So on 20 July last year, after After a few bumper days on the farm over the years, I’d often wondered
weeks of monitoring the birds, I got my ‘dream team’ together (including Sir Edward Dashwood) and we set up at four hides around the farm to(^) attempt the 1,000 bag over a field of rape stubbles. We started at 9am and
finished up at 6pm. The birds had been building for a couple of weeks and I knew we were in for a good day, but I couldn’t believe it when we tallyed
them up at the end of the day.... We’d shot 1,542! We went out the following weekend too and shot another 300. That’s a
lot of crops protected!
Fred Beales, Hampshire
Proper red letter day!
To win your own Seeland Weston Club Waistcoat, simply send your letter to us at the above address.
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14 http://www.sp ortingshooter.co.uk
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are killed at refibre wads, althyards; lookingpast 45 yardwad distances. Theof 28g you will needPlastic game shells arecan bris, meanin to shoot this more than ng onco nsequough whe plastic.ly reallyently,ively sholat benea fibre wad highest birds fits to a pattugh to cleenog thaten looking at thrt range, less hav unlesse any influen marginally cheapeit’s unlikely that ern that gamanly thane cartre coa p kill at thesyou are out ceidglastr t hanst of 30 e ic e a
day’s shocheapest part of it so most wfew extra pounds oting, the cartridgesper thousand ill ha are inppily spenshells ably the variforfibre.d a
towards an all-fibre future? And what would that mWith the topic of plastic pollution hotting up, we ask whetTHE BIG DEBAean for high bird shooters or wildfowlher game shooting is moving TE ers?
Plasand onlhas been protic manufacturers are Around 8.3over the next fiincrease pPROBLEM!y 9% roductiPLASTIC bn tonnes of pduced since the 19has been recycled. on by plone ve years.anning to 50s stic third la
FIBRE WADS // WITH DON BRUNT
What will be inin the future? your bag
PICTURES: DON BRUNT
LETTERS
READERS’
WORTH £59.99!
Fred, Andy, Sam and Ben after a truly successful day