aaron airgunner Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 hi all, i was just wondering how amny of you stop shooting pigeons this time of year? i do because they are raising their chicks and i would hate to shoot the parents and for the chicks to die slowly in the nest. i'll give it another month and a bit and i'll resume shooting them. thanks, Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 you'll kill just as many chicks then, the nesting period seems to get longer and longer these days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaron airgunner Posted April 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 will i? i thoguht they stopped breeding around md may. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 try April to August and can be a lot longer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David BASC Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 Al4x is spot on! One of the main reasons that BASC keeps fighting to keep pigeons on Open General Licence and off the 'traditional' quarry list, ifs that the quarry list is based on breeding seasons. As Al4x points out the woodpigeon breeding season is extensive, and quite probably longer even that he suggests would mean that farmers could not control one of the most destructive pests for most of the year! Nightmare David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian750 Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 Absolutely, another thing to consider is how many broods a mating pair will have in this extended season, the bloody things are taking over!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 Wood pigeons are now breeding in almost any month of the year. I have recently shot young birds just getting a neck ring which means they are about 3 months old. Hatched in the middle of the winter cold spell. Having said that the bulk of breeding takes place between April and October. I usualy stop shooting them around mid April , until the end of the harvest in August. At least it gives them some time to breed unmolested and perhaps more important leaves the countryside quiet while most game and song birds are nesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSS Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 I shoot them all year round because I get asked to. It wouldnt be nice to see anything starve to death, but it is something we have to do sometimes. Keep at them in my opinion All the best SSS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 Wood pigeons are now breeding in almost any month of the year. I have recently shot young birds just getting a neck ring which means they are about 3 months old. Hatched in the middle of the winter cold spell. Having said that the bulk of breeding takes place between April and October. I usualy stop shooting them around mid April , until the end of the harvest in August. At least it gives them some time to breed unmolested and perhaps more important leaves the countryside quiet while most game and song birds are nesting. your farmers must be well chuffed if they have pigeons hitting laid crops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mossy835 Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 i shoot them all year round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaron airgunner Posted April 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 its just i noticed a lot of chicks around, more than in winter and autumn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonevo Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 shoot them all year around plus rabbits and squirrel magpies, fox, to me vermin gets shot no matter what day of the week it is got to otherwise the farmer will have someone else do it ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin lad Posted April 9, 2010 Report Share Posted April 9, 2010 the farmers whos lands i shoot let me do so because they want them gone if i leave them to breed and raise there chicks it would mean twice as many to eat his crops later in the year and that would be going against what they want, i wonder how many of us on this site would still be welcomed back by our farmers if we told them we were letting there pigeons multiply to come back and eat all their crops? or not.... colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berettaman Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 Its buisness as usual as far as im concerned too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted April 13, 2010 Report Share Posted April 13, 2010 your farmers must be well chuffed if they have pigeons hitting laid crops al4x I have forgoten the last time I saw a laid field of corn. With the modern short straw stalks its a very rare sight. I mainly shoot on big game shoots and the keepers do not like pigeon shooting during the breeding season and game shooting season. As a result my pigeon shooting season is from late January to mid April and late July to mid September. As there no peas grown on my 3.5,000 ha shooting there no crops for the pigeon to damage. Even if there were I still would give the pigeons a break. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albertan_J Posted April 13, 2010 Report Share Posted April 13, 2010 If the farmers still have trouble with pigeons feeding on their crops I will continue shooting them. Rape will be a bit too high on some places but others have been freshly drilled for beans and other crops so its give and take I guess. I've lied anyway I should have said I will continue deafening them with my badly aimed shots from the 12B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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