P~MX Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 I've been thinkin about this for a while now and I thought I'd run it by you all, this might have been covered before but here goes anyway -- with the seasons & weather changes over the last several years our shootin season seems to me to start and end at the wrong times ! the Grouse start in the middle of the summer,then September it's ducks etc and October we've pheasants & woodcock, all these birds have been shoot this season in weather that to me doesn't befit game shootin ! Our season ends for most of us on the 31st January when if we are honest our shooting season is in full swing, I don't about you but I don't start shooting any of the about mentioned birds for a full month after we can legally shoot them, I just don't get any enjoyment out of shootin game birds in mild Summer/Autumn conditions,I'd much prefer to shoot in winter conditions like those we have now normally in February/March, I'm not sayin I'd like or want to shoot game in March but I for one would certainly be on for changing our calender dates and move them by one month ! There is no bird that I know of would be in a more venerable position because of this change, Maybe it's because I've an old school way of thinkin but I'd rather be out shootin on a nice crispy frosty morning or evening than one where the sun's splittin the tree's and the midges are still eatin you alive when you're out wain on a duck flightin in ! What do you think ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matone Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 Pheasants could definitely go on until mid Feb at least imho.The grouse season needs to start when it does as they quickly become hard to drive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
margun Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 Personally, I'd change the wildfowl start date to Oct 1st. The seasons are different now, Autumn starts later (there's still green leaves on the trees where I am now). In September, the majority of drake mallard I've shot in recent years don't even have full adult plumage (mottled head and neck) so I guess it's fair to assume the same goes for other species and that the ducks are breeding later? I tend not to shoot very much at all during September any more, in fact this season I didn't lift my gun during October either as OP said, getting eaten alive my mozzies is no fun. Something just doesn't feel right about shooting duck in warm weather. Just a thought mind you, would like to see how others feel.. That said though, farmer friends of mine have had no end of grief this September with greylags so there's different cases in different parts of the country which I suppose the current seasons allow for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry d Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 In September, the majority of drake mallard I've shot in recent years don't even have full adult plumage (mottled head and neck)..... Or that they are just coming out of eclipse? Remember what is OK for someone in Cornwall may not be true of someone in Orkney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kent Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 Not realy, i think the Deer seasons should never have been fiddled with either. Perhaps the mandotory suspentions should be looked at towards more volentary restraint as most Wildfowling is as part of clubs with many experianced persons monitoring the actual conditions on the ground in question. If its too early round you just dont go IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollie Posted November 12, 2011 Report Share Posted November 12, 2011 I agree. We never start shooting ducks until late sept/early oct because most of the birds aren't properly feathered. Our pheasant syndicate had it's first shoot last weekend and it was like the summer it was so warm; I would hate to think what it was like at the start of October. Also the woodcock are just starting in earnest now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildfowler12 Posted November 12, 2011 Report Share Posted November 12, 2011 (edited) I'd like to see the wildfowl and pheasant seasons pushed back a month, the pheasant season could end a month later maybe, but I think the wildfowl season currently ends at the right time. Too many young birds about at the start of the season, for that reason the syndicate I was in for the past few years didn't start on the pheasant untill November. 2 weeks ago I even saw 5 very young ducklings (I'd guess about 10 days old), must have been a result of the 'Indian Summer' we recently had! Edited November 12, 2011 by Wildfowler12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted November 12, 2011 Report Share Posted November 12, 2011 (edited) From a biological point of view it would be very wrong to push back the start of the shooting season for a extension at the end . For waterfowl the highest natural winter mortality happens in the new year Jan and Feb when food is at its shortest and the weather conditions at their harshest. Any wildfowl shot after January would have been the survivors that would be going on to breed in the spring. If September shooting was stopped then for many stubble shooting mallard would be an thing of the past as few are left unploughed after mid September. The birds may not be fully into their winter plumage , but their loss in the autumn will make little impact on the overall population , unlike duck shot in the first months of the year. From a personal point of view I would prefer to shoot in crisp cold weather , but that’s not what is good for the population as a whole. I must confess I hanker for a few more weeks inland wildfowling , but when shooting on the coast the 20th February is more than long enough. Even on the coast the birds are clearly geared up for the coming breeding season by mid Feb. Yes we are seeing mallard ducklings in the shooting season, given the food they will breed almost right through the winter. I have seen duck sitting on eggs in Feb. So where can you draw the line. There may be a slight case for a months more pheasant shooting , as the majority of birds are reared , but it would be detrimental where the pheasants are not reared and what of our winter pigeon roost shooting at pigeons. Would that become a thing of the past in game areas ? No leave the seasons alone. And do not forget once such matters get into parliament it opens the door to more restrictions to shooting especially with a Tory government in control ( almost all the recent laws restricting bird shooting have come in under Tory governments and no I am not Labour supporter ). And if you do not like shooting mallard on a September stubble then do not do it. Nobody forces you to do it. It should be a personel choice. Edited November 12, 2011 by anser2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted November 12, 2011 Report Share Posted November 12, 2011 (edited) Sorry cock up editing. Edited November 12, 2011 by anser2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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