Pheasant and partridge classified as species that imperil UK wildlife

[Foxyboy43]

Dreadful news for english shooters generally not just driven/walked up pheasant types (like me). How will those who have a rifle for vermin control on those (many) grounds within the newly prescribed (and doubtless soon to be increased) radius now justify their fox rifle - no birds = no need for control! Please gawd it never makes it across the Irish Sea.

 

[baguio]

Mark Avery is a campaigning environmentalist (that’s the polite way of describing him). His whole attack on fieldsports is founded on just one thing, his perception of the killing of raptors on grouse moors, in particular hen harriers. Like wise his Wild Justice cohort Ruth Tingay of raptor persecution Scotland. Forget about Packham, he is just the mouth piece of these two. If there were Hen Harriers in abundance it is doubtful whether Wild Justice would have got the impetus to success and the supporters they obviously have. Root cause of all this is the lack of hen harriers on grouse moors.

Their numbers are highest on grouse moors as are the numbers of many other species. Avery and co don't actually care about the facts or the benefits of shooting. If they did they would actively acknowledge the pros of shooting. They simply want shooting banned. The end!

 

[gerarddwatts]

If it wasn't harriers it would be ravens or owls or bats, or even, as we saw recently, adders! They hate shooting and shooters. They will try to get traction with any flimsy excuse, and our legislators don't know enough, or care enough, to rebut their twaddle. Sadly the media lap up their lies; lazy reporting regurgitating it to fill their papers..

 

[Foxyboy43]

Surely the core of the problem is that WJ believe that all shooters fit "the species that causes ecological, environmental or socio-economic harm" criterion? So how do we ever deal with this mindset?

 

[kes]

We have to quite dispassionately but scientifically dismantle any credibility they have left, proving their untruthful and dangerous bias and recover for everyone the soul of those charities taken over by these arrogant people - then perhaps we can work together to everyone's benefit.
In the same way the representation of shooting must be reformed.

 

[VSS]

Mark Avery is a campaigning environmentalist (that’s the polite way of describing him). His whole attack on fieldsports is founded on just one thing, his perception of the killing of raptors on grouse moors, in particular hen harriers. Like wise his Wild Justice cohort Ruth Tingay of raptor persecution Scotland. Forget about Packham, he is just the mouth piece of these two. If there were Hen Harriers in abundance it is doubtful whether Wild Justice would have got the impetus to success and the supporters they obviously have. Root cause of all this is the lack of hen harriers on grouse moors.

Mark Avery et al are fighting a petty class war. Wildlife is secondary, but makes a good cover and gets support.

 

[User00035]

We have to quite dispassionately but scientifically dismantle any credibility they have left, proving their untruthful and dangerous bias and recover for everyone the soul of those charities taken over by these arrogant people - then perhaps we can work together to everyone's benefit.
In the same way the representation of shooting must be reformed.

We must add to that the need to self-police. There should be an industry code of conduct within shooting on the question of game bird release so that irresponsible shoot owners (who are often wealthy urban migrants, it must be said) cannot provide the brush with which antis can tar the whole of shooting. While we're at it, deer management needs tidying up as well. This rewilding thing is gaining traction and soon shooting will be deemed not only to have failed in deer control (which in some ways it has) but has added to the problem. Before we know it, stalking will be abolished in favour of lynx reintroduction. And all proposed by people who live in west London and couldn't tell the difference between a Chinese water deer and a Wapiti.
The we will have the credibility to take the fight to the antis and beyond, to their agents in government conservation bodies and charities, who place their political agenda ahead of meaningful and sustainable stewardship.
We have to be whiter than white because this is now an overwhelmingly urban society, wherever people actually live, and they have urban sensibilities. We will always be on the back foot with public opinion so we have to work doubly hard. That's just the way it is.

 

[Dunwaters]

We have to quite dispassionately but scientifically dismantle any credibility they have left, proving their untruthful and dangerous bias and recover for everyone the soul of those charities taken over by these arrogant people - then perhaps we can work together to everyone's benefit.
In the same way the representation of shooting must be reformed.

Your wasting your time with science and facts, this is down to people who either feel, think, or believe that shooting is wrong, no further argument or discussion is required.
Facts are irrelevant, feelings and emotions are what matter.
The pity of it is that the game shooting industry has been behaving with a reckless disregard for animal welfare and the environment for decades,they're an easy target, highly visible and difficult to defend and their activities have tainted us all.
We walked ourselves into this mess by wilfully condoning an industry based solely on the use of live birds as sporting targets. As the industry grew more and more targets were produced with a total disregard for the effects on the environment
Initially the food value of the birds provided a fig leaf of an excuse for this behaviour, but that leaf has been blown away. We've reached the stage where birds are being over produced to the extent that the carcasses have little or no value but still the birds are produced and shot.
We wouldn't fix it ourselves, it's going to be fixed for us and maybe it's time it was fixed.

 

[Basil H]

This matter has been inaccurately reported in the MSM (can't imagine why). For a resume of where we really are check out Matt Cross twitter. It's very clear and not so damaging to "the industry" as you might think.

 

[foxhunter]

Dreadful news for english shooters generally not just driven/walked up pheasant types (like me). How will those who have a rifle for vermin control on those (many) grounds within the newly prescribed (and doubtless soon to be increased) radius now justify their fox rifle - no birds = no need for control! Please gawd it never makes it across the Irish Sea.

We dont just control foxes to help game birds, what about lambs ,poultry and ground nesting birds....