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Post by accipiter on Nov 19, 2015 9:50:23 GMT
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Post by alf1951 on Nov 20, 2015 15:13:57 GMT
Bad news indeed. You don't suppose The Hon Mr Justice Ouseley who ruled on this and about whom Debrett's lists his "recreations" as "family, sport, music and wine", might just be more interested in the sport of grouse shooting rather than football, darts or Cumberland wrestling?
Alf
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Post by shirl100 on Nov 20, 2015 17:24:47 GMT
Certainly is bad news, personally I fail to see why pheasants (and other species) need to be reared by gamekeepers so that people can go out and "enjoy" killing them. Are there any statistics - reliable ones - that shown raptors are a problem to gamekeepers, if this report is right it appears not. Sorry but I hate the thought of killing for the fun of it!
Shirl
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Post by NellyDee on Nov 20, 2015 17:39:22 GMT
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Post by shirl100 on Nov 20, 2015 17:46:43 GMT
Fingers crossed it does for those who do this illegally but I suspect we will still have the problem where a license has been granted - however I am all for a complete ban on snares, I believe some types of snare already are already illegal. Shirl |
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Post by rowanberry on Nov 27, 2015 21:47:04 GMT
Certainly is bad news, personally I fail to see why pheasants (and other species) need to be reared by gamekeepers so that people can go out and "enjoy" killing them. Are there any statistics - reliable ones - that shown raptors are a problem to gamekeepers, if this report is right it appears not. Sorry but I hate the thought of killing for the fun of it! Shirl I have read that far, far more pheasants are killed on the roads than could ever be killed by raptors...or foxes either, for that matter. I honestly believe what happens is that a bird of prey helps to 'rewild' the pheasants, (for lack of a better word...because they aren't actually wild- they are pen-reared fancy chickens, really!  ) I can see that whenever the sparrowhawk makes a kill in my garden, the smaller birds are quite spooked for some time afterwards...much more cautious and flighty. All it would take is for a buzzard to take a few poults, and the rest of the pheasants would quickly become more skittish...and a less easy target as a result. The hunting estates charge for the number of birds shot... and when a lot of the 'hunters' are wealthy businessmen who have a hard time hitting the broad side of a barn- well, flightier birds means less ££££. That's my theory, anyway! |
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Post by accipiter on Nov 28, 2015 17:06:37 GMT
Far more pheasants become victims of motor vehicles then they do by the common buzzard as you quite rightly say Rowanberry, falconers for instance would never dream of using a buzzard for hunting pheasants or anything else much, which gives one some idea of their prowess.
But it is true to say some pheasant poults and the odd adult are taken by buzzards but this is only a “small number” in the grand scheme of things which is mainly carried out by “young buzzards” visiting their pen. Between my wife observations and mine I can quite honestly say we have never seen a buzzard take one single adult pheasant or poults either.
One farm on my patch has a shoot most years in which pheasants are brought in half grown and then put in to pens for their safety protected by an electric fence to dissuade foxes. The keeper also removes any perch that could be used by avian predators.
There are two breeding buzzard pairs on this estate which produce young most years along with carrion crows, jays, and magpies but the gamekeeper in question does not cull any of these birds although some other keepers do in the case of corvids. I did asked this particular keeper on his view on buzzards as a pheasant predator his view were buzzards have “very little impact on pheasants,” besides he takes account on numbers lost and is quite happy with the way things stand.
As you can imagine Alan misses “nothing” and can quite honestly say this keeper is true to his word, and as far as Sparrowhawk goes he knows these are on the estate breeding too, and is he worried not one little bit what Alan would call an enlightened man in this particular respect.
But as far as shooting as a sport goes I think members already know Alan’s view on that particular pastime!
Shirl as far as I am aware no reliable research as been carried out in respect of number of pheasants taken by buzzards, an individual buzzard may be a problem in some situations that's if one can see it as a problem, as far as I am concerted it is nothing but nature taking its natural course.
Alan, diligently reviewing the situation
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Post by accipiter on Nov 28, 2015 20:15:28 GMT
I forgot to mention the only survey that has been carried out was by the BASC (British Association for Shooting and Conservation) in other words gamekeepers so therefor “unreliable in my opinion,” which is why I considered it not worth the mention, but their estimate was from 1 to 10%.
I also mentioned buzzards taking adult pheasants’ although there is (no documented evidence) to support this fact, but the remains of adult pheasants have been found on their nests, although I would say the great majority of these would be as carrion or not fully fit birds in my opinion. But buzzards just like any other bird are individuals and who to say that the odd buzzard is not capable of taking "the odd" fully fit adult pheasant when the opportunity arose.
Alan
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Post by shirl100 on Dec 10, 2015 14:53:11 GMT
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Post by shirl100 on Feb 4, 2016 12:57:31 GMT
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Post by jonathan on Feb 4, 2016 17:57:41 GMT
Rather than a snare, it's almost certainly a 'pole trap' that's caused this latest atrocity. True pole traps are illegal, and have been for many years, but keepers simply use perfectly legal Fenn traps on the top of a fence post, etc. It's possible the Osprey wasn't the intended victim, but - apart from the appallingly cruel death - that's the problem with such traps. They're entirely indiscriminate.
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