harrycatcat 31 Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 Severe Weather Alert for the Shooting of Wildfowl and Waders Call for Voluntary Restraint Today, (8th January 2010), is the seventh day of freezing conditions in England and Wales under the agreed procedures for managing the shooting of ducks, geese and waders during prolonged severe weather. If the severe weather continues, and the agreed criteria are met, a statutory suspension could come into effect in England and Wales on the 15th day of severe weather. It is usual on the seventh/eighth day of freezing conditions, for BASC to call upon all its members and membership groups to exercise voluntary restraint in their shooting of all waterfowl (including released duck, woodcock, snipe, coot and moorhen), where local conditions require it. Given the current weather conditions across England and Wales and the weather forecast, we are calling upon BASC members and membership groups in England and Wales to exercise this voluntary restraint with immediate effect. This winter, unusually heavy snowfalls may be affecting feeding conditions for waterfowl more than in the past. This should be taken into account when decisions about shooting are taken at the local level. Information sheets on Voluntary Restraint and Waterfowl Shooting and Severe Weather are attached (along with a pdf copy of this letter) and can also be found along with further guidance on how to exercise voluntary restraint areavailable on BASC’s website: www.basc.org.uk Please note that this call for voluntary restraint refers only to England and Wales at the current time. Scotland and Northern Ireland have already introduced a statutory suspension of shooting. Please bring this notice to the attention of your members and any other shooting people you encounter, not least so that the shooting community can be seen to be acting responsibly under the circumstances. Please also keep your country/regional office informed over any actions which your club or syndicate takes, together with reports of unusual bird movements or birds in poor condition. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rjimmer 4 Posted January 13, 2010 Report Share Posted January 13, 2010 With bag limits of 6 ducks per flight, we exercise restraint all through the season. We only shoot coot one day per season. This year it was today. 390! Usually a lot more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bell 3,604 Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 What do you do with 390 dead Coot and why do you shoot them ? Not having a go just interested as to the reason Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rjimmer 4 Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 (edited) What do you do with 390 dead Coot and why do you shoot them ? Not having a go just interested as to the reason Some people eat them, but it's an acquired taste. Soak them in salted water for 24 hrs, change the salted water and soak them for another 24 hrs. I tried them once, before I had heard of the soaking bit. I imagine they tastes like Brent Goose! It's been a tradition on the estate since about 1904, when the first specialist shooting boats were built. Some of the bags in the record books are up toward the 3,000 mark. In bygone days they would have been distribute to the people of the village, where most of the population are estate tenants. Coot can be shot all season but doing it on just one day means that the picking up and cripple finding(non-toxic shot) can be done in an organised way. They are migratory, and some of the ringed birds have had their rings attached as far away as Holland and Paris. They come in large numbers in winter and compete with the wigeon, Brent and swans for the zostera, and grain that is fed. It's a sight to see when a noble Lord has to plunge the barrels of his Holland & Holland/Purdey into the salt water to cool them down. My old Winchester barrels got a bit warm for a minute or so, but not 'that' warm. Edited January 14, 2010 by rjimmer Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bell 3,604 Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 Thanks for that, thought as much, i have the same trouble with moorhens on my flightpond, but not in the same numbers Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rjimmer 4 Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 Thanks for that, thought as much, i have the same trouble with moorhens on my flightpond, but not in the same numbers I read once that feeding a flightpond with whole maze eliminates the moorhen problem because it is too big for them to swallow. Horrendous expensifold, I hear you say! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bell 3,604 Posted January 15, 2010 Report Share Posted January 15, 2010 My cocker tends to eliminate the moorhen problem, she hates them with a vengance Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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