Deer Stalking and Management E-Book

Lewis Potter

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Beschreibung

Deer Stalking and Management is a wide-ranging book written in a practical style. It encapsulates the often solitary experiences of the stalker who has only the wildlife for company and considers a world that many people do not know about, do not understand and which many find alien. The author is deeply involved in deer management and stalking and is passionately concerned about the welfare of these beautiful animals. His objective is to both educate and inform. In this book, he summarizes the natural history and characteristics of all the species of deer found in the United Kingdom, assesses the environmental impact of deer, describes the type of damage they do and how it can be identified; explains why deer management is essential, not just for commercial reasons, but also for the welfare of the animals themselves and discusses the organizations associated with deer management and the associated training courses and qualifications that are available. He analyses the rifles and cartridges that can be used by the deer stalker as well as rifle maintenance, ballistics, sights, sound moderators, clothing and ancillary equipment. Careful consideration is given to all aspects of deer management, stalking methods, and taking and placing the shot correctly. He also explains how the carcass should be handled and describes gralloching, skinning and jointing, and deer diseases and injuries and accidents to deer caused by road traffic accidents and wire fencing. With an overview of firearms law in England, Wales and Scotland as it relates to deer, this is a comprehensive guide written in a practical and no-nonsense style. Aimed at all those interested in field sports, country pursuits and especially those interested in deer, deer management and stalking and fully illustrated with 149 colour photographs and 14 diagrams.

Leseprobe

Deer Stalking

AND MANAGEMENT

Lewis Potter

Foreword by Keith Bradbury

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2008 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2014

© Lewis Potter 2008

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 787 8

Disclaimer:

The author and the publisher do not accept any responsibility in any manner whatsoever for any error or omission, or any loss, damage, injury, adverse outcome, or liability of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any of the information contained in this book, or reliance upon it. If in doubt about any aspect of deer stalking and management readers are advised to seek professional advice.

Illustrations are by the author unless otherwise stated.

Frontispiece photograph by Brian Phipps.

Contents

Foreword

Dedication and Acknowledgements

Preface

 1.    Deer Species

 2.    Deer and the Environment

 3.    Making a Start

 4.    Rifles and Cartridges

 5.    Sights, Sound Moderators, Clothing and Ancillary Equipment

 6.    Managing Deer

 7.    Stalking Deer

 8.    The Shot: Before and After

 9.    Venison, Trophies, Records and Rifle Maintenance

10.   Accidents, Injuries and Diseases

11.   An Overview of Deer and Firearms Law

Useful Addresses

Further Reading

Glossary

Index

Foreword

I first met Lewis (or Lew, as most friends know him) some twenty years ago when I was working for the Forestry Commission (now Forest Enterprise) as a head ranger. At that time I was dealing with not only wildlife but organizing and running courses in wildlife management for Forestry wildlife staff from all over the UK. I was also assisting with deer stalking courses for the BDS and BASC. I qualified as an assessor and verifier for NVQs and later ran similar courses for Otley Agricultural College.

In 1990, after some years of informal involvement with deer, Lewis came on one of our courses at Cannock Chase to, in his words, ‘see how things are supposed to be done’. This was one of the earlier courses that involved not just classroom work, but a high input of practical assessment and marksmanship. It was not very often we had a student using his own make of rifle.

Lewis has already written two successful books: one on beekeeping, another of his hobbies, and recently one on his full-time job of gunsmithing. With this latest book Lewis has attempted to answer a lot of the novice stalker’s queries concerning calibres, ammunition and other related matters about firearms. Deer, of course, figure largely in the book, with sections covering species, habits, habitat, management and diseases. I was glad to see the section on ticks and Lyme disease, which highlighted what can be a very nasty disease in humans if not treated quickly.

I am glad he has made the point about always and never, as deer rarely do what you expect and often confound us by doing something completely different to how we expect things to be.

Please enjoy the book and glean everything you can from it: there is a lot of really useful information in these pages. Take note and always strive to be the best stalker and shot – the deer deserve only the best. Enjoy your time in the forest and on the hill, taking great care to be safe in all you do.

Keith (Brad) BradburyChief Ranger (retired)Chilterns, West England Conservancyand Thetford Forest

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my wife, Sue, who translates my scribble into legible English and tolerates my prolonged absences when I am out with the deer.

Acknowledgements

I thank The Crowood Press for the opportunity to write a book on a subject close to my heart and which has fascinated me for years. Special thanks go to those who generously contributed their time to read parts or all of the manuscript and offered ideas and advice. These include Keith (Brad) Bradbury, who also kindly provided the Foreword, Stuart Burlinson, Patrick Faulkner, Paul Harding, Lawrence Langridge, John Noble and George Wallace.

For help with photographs and various aspects of photography I owe thanks to G. ‘Harry’ Alderslade, Steve Carter, Keith Bradbury, Tom Braithwaite, Chris Fresson, Paul Harding, Chris Hardy, Mark Howard, Thom Jarman, Kevin Mace and Calvin Crossman (butchers), Roger Nurden, Brian Phipps (wildlife photographer), Nick Ridley (professional photographer), Pierre Shone, and David Stretton (Donington Deer Management).

None of this would have been possible without the help and permission of those landowners whose properties I have been privileged to roam. These include John Child, Gerry Barnett, Mr R. J. Berkeley, Frank and Carol Forbes, Dr Lennox Gregorowski, Mr Michael Fitzgerald, Annette Gorton, Lord and Lady Farnham, Lawrence and Yvonne Langridge, Mr and Mrs John Long, Mr Dennis Winnett and the Greensleeves Shooting Club. I also acknowledge the help and assistance I received from the BASC Deer Department, The Deer Initiative, Brenda Mayle and Dr Robin Gill of Forest Research, Jack Pyke of England, Swarovski UK Ltd and the Tree Council.

Some things are not possible without extra help, so for acting in the male model role I thank Will Teiser and my sons Matt, Dan and Jamie, and also my daughter Lucie for her computer skills.

One person who deserves special thanks is my good friend Adrian Howard who, right from the start, unhesitatingly gave many hours of his own time to help whenever possible, and also his wife Janet, who provided free meals with her usual cheerfulness. I thank you all, and anyone else who might have helped, even in the smallest way, but especially with that vital ingredient: encouragement.

Preface

There is one thing you can be sure of when discussing deer and their habits and behaviour, and that is the words always and never should only be used with considerable caution. Their use may give an authoritative ring to any statement but will rarely be a reflection of all the facts, as nature seldom deals in absolutes.

It is, of course, true that deer have instinctive reactions to certain situations that tend to follow a pattern and each species has behavioural habits sometimes very different to other deer. Even those species with strong herd instincts will, however have individual animals capable of doing the unexpected.

The more one goes out stalking, or just deer watching, the more one realizes that there is so much to learn. No two days are ever quite the same. If one stalked for a lifetime there would always be something new to be learnt. If the words always and never do have a use it is perhaps in the context ‘things may never always be the same’.

LASP2008

Chapter 1

Deer Species

We are most fortunate in the British Isles to have a large and flourishing population of deer living wild and often remarkably close to human habitation. Nowhere else in Europe is there such a variety of deer. In the UK there are six species roaming freely: the truly native red and roe, and the introduced fallow, Japanese sika, muntjac and Chinese water deer. In addition, in parks there are the larger Formosan sika and the Manchurian (of which there may be a few Formosan living a feral existence) and the Père David deer. Apart from these there is the red/sika hybrid, which is causing considerable concern in some parts of the country as it is in danger of spoiling the true red deer bloodlines. Even reindeer or caribou have been introduced in the north of Scotland, but do not qualify as quarry animals in the UK; they are unusual as the only species where the females carry antlers.

Of the introduced deer, fallow have been with us long enough to be naturalized. They were certainly brought here shortly after the Norman Conquest and were kept in deer parks – a privilege usually granted by the King. Many of these parks are documented, even those that have ceased to exist, so we can be fairly certain of an original date of introduction around the eleventh to twelfth century. Surprisingly, some of those early parks, even those with wooden paling fencing, survived until the Second World War. There can be little doubt that there were escapees over the intervening centuries, and aiding their establishment were the harsh punishments meted out to commoners who broke the forest laws and dared to take the ‘King’s deer’. Areas designated for the sport of kings and noblemen must also have been an aid to the fallow’s successful colonization.

The spread of sika, muntjac and Chinese water deer, although of much later origin, is a well-documented story of escapees becoming established. Apart from those that escaped, their establishment in some parts of the country is no accident: there have, for example, been isolated pockets of muntjac so far removed from other populations that they can only have got there with human assistance.

By whatever means they arrived, most stalkers, deer watchers and photographers would regard our small island as being all the richer for having them. They are beautiful, shy and fascinating creatures – a valuable asset to our great variety of fauna. When uncontrolled, however, they can be a considerable nuisance, not only damaging to crops and gardens but to our native habitat. This in turn, as well as the loss of ancient established flora, can have a detrimental effect on other wildlife.

The deer that the amateur or recreational stalker is most likely to encounter are fallow, roe and muntjac. Red deer are usually regarded as a very valuable asset, but management opportunities sometimes become available in a park environment. Sika, at the time of writing, have a limited range and Chinese water deer (CWD) are constricted very much by their preferred habitat. In those areas where CWD occur they seem to be doing exceptionally well and something of a credit to the principles of deer management in this country. Yet if within the following pages there is perceived to be a bias towards fallow, roe and muntjac, it is for the very good reason that not only are they the deer most commonly encountered by the average stalker, but in general they are, due to their increasing numbers and wide distribution, the most cause for concern and therefore need proper management.

SPECIES AND PRIMARY CHARACTERISTICS

Red Deer (cervus elaphus)

Average lifespan: 14–18 years (dependent upon habitat and feed)

Adult male: stag

Adult female: hind

Young: calf.

Established: Circa twelve million years (in its present recognizable form), being regarded as a subspecies of , which occupy the continental land mass.