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Driven grouse shooting

April 18, 2023

Driven grouse shooting is the hunting of the red grouse, a field sport of the United Kingdom. The grouse-shooting season extends from 12 August, often called the "Glorious Twelfth", to 10 December each year. Large numbers of grouse are driven to fly over people with shotguns. Driven grouse shooting first appeared around 1850 and became popular in the later Victorian era as a fashionable sport for the wealthy. The expanding rail network allowed relatively easy access into the remote upland areas of Britain for the first time and driven grouse shooting developed in tandem with this by providing shooting in a convenient and reliable form. Large numbers of birds are driven over a fixed position providing a regular supply of fast moving targets without the need to seek out the birds. The development of the breech-loading shotgun was also an essential ingredient in the development of the practice as it allowed more rapid reloading in the field matching the availability of target birds.

Gamekeeper (left) with a shooter on a driven grouse shoot in the Scottish Highlands (1922)

The alternative to a driven shoot is a walked-up shoot. In this form of shooting the participants walk forward in a line and flush the birds as they go, either themselves or with the assistance of specially trained dogs. The typical terrain and vegetation found on grouse moors means that walked-up shooting is more physically demanding than a driven shoot and requires some physical fitness.

Shooting takes place on grouse moors, areas of moorland in Scotland, northern England, and Wales. These areas, some 16,763 square kilometres in extent (about 8% of the combined area of England and Scotland) form an artificial habitat[1] that is intensively managed, usually by regular burning, to provide a constant supply of young heather and to prevent the spread of trees and grass. Predators and mountain hares are also killed.[2] These practices have been described as not just precluding birds of prey, but also preventing wildness, natural landscapes, forest and bog regeneration, and ecotourism.[3]: 167 

Description

 
Shooting butts on Scottish grouse moor

The red grouse is a medium-sized bird of the grouse family or subfamily which is found in heather moorland in Great Britain and Ireland. It is usually classified as a subspecies of the willow grouse, but is sometimes considered to be a separate species Lagopus scoticus, found only in the British Isles. It is also known as the moorfowl or moorbird. Grouse can fly at up to 130 km/h (81 mph).[4] They make difficult targets, but on a specially managed moor where they are driven in large numbers over prepared butts, even amateur shooters can kill large numbers. The name "driven grouse shooting" refers to the way in which the grouse are driven towards the hunters (otherwise known as 'Guns')[5] by beaters. A shooting party usually includes 8–10 Guns who stand in a line in the butts—hides for shooting spaced some 20–30 m (66–98 ft) apart, screened by a turf or stone wall and usually sunken into the ground to minimise their profile—to shoot the grouse in flight.[6] A code of conduct governs behaviour on the grouse moor for both safety and etiquette.

 
Red grouse

Grouse moors have been described as "the ultimate trophy asset... one of the ultimate playthings, for which people will pay well over the asset value."[7]

Grouse shooting can also be undertaken by 'walking up' grouse over pointers, or by flushing the birds with other dogs.[8]

In southern Sweden, this form of hunting is called fjälljakt; the corresponding biome is not managed by burning, but consists of a wooded mosaic, with heather, trees, lakes and bogland.[9] Its management by, in particular, large wild herbivores such as moose maintains this mosaic as a stable condition, with modest populations of grouse (often hidden from predators in willow thickets) and a rich variety of other species.[3]: 171–173 

Moorland management

Draining

Large areas of grouse moor were previously blanket bogs, where sphagnum moss is the dominant vegetation, and drainage is required to allow heather to flourish.[10] Both drainage and burning damage these bogs.

Burning

To support a large population of grouse, gamekeepers burn heather, between 1 October and 15 April.[11] A burned patch of heather allows fresh shoots to come through which are ideal nutrition for grouse and prevents the build up of dry plant matter. Burning also kills tree and grass regrowth. Burning is done in patches so that there is a variety of heather heights, on a rotation of between 8 and 12 years. While the short new shoots provide food, the taller, older heather provides cover and shelter for the grouse. Heather moorland is an unusual habitat worldwide, almost all un-natural, the result of management by burning for grouse.[12][13] (The claim that 75% of the world's heather moorland is found in the UK is contested and has been shown to be unsubstantiated.[14]) 60% of all England's upland Sites of Special Scientific Interest are managed for grouse shooting. UK moorlands and blanket bogs are a carbon sink and burning heather releases this carbon,[15] although some of the charcoal from burned heather is stored in the soil.[16]

Heather burning on moorland has significant negative impacts on peat hydrology, peat chemistry and physical properties, river water chemistry and river ecology.[17] Moor burning reduces Sphagnum moss growth and the density of macroinvertebrates which play a vital role in aquatic food webs by feeding on algae, microbes and detritus at the base of food chains before they themselves are consumed by birds, fish and amphibians. Burning also reduces the water content of the upper layers of peat, so the peat is less able to retain minerals which are important for plant growth and resist acid rain.[18]

To minimize the damage, some moorland estates managed for grouse shooting have agreed not to burn over protected blanket bogs, where fires dry and burn the peat. However, some burning of these areas continues.[2] If a moorland is not burned over for several years, large stands of rank and woody heather build up, posing a risk of major fires due to the large fuel loads. Larger wildfires burn with greater intensity and may be more likely to burn the peat beneath.[15] This risk is limited to long-established, unnatural heather moorland that is actively burned; wildfires are very rare in the corresponding mosaic biome of southern Sweden.[3]: 165 

Mowing

Trials of mechanical mowing have been made to achieve the same objective of regeneration of heather. Mowing produces only one-seventieth as much overall carbon dioxide emissions as burning but costs approximately six times more.[19]

Killing predators

Grouse moors have a near-200 year history of killing large numbers of predators, including many species that are now protected.[20] Burning and predator control correlate with higher densities of red grouse, and also of a few other species that are able to thrive on open heather moors; golden plover, curlew, lapwing, common redshank and ring ouzel.[21][12][22] The RSPB's Investigations Team reports that in 2017, despite vast swathes of suitable habitat, not a single hen harrier chick was produced on a privately owned grouse moor. Illegal killing of raptors on grouse moors is widespread.[23]

A 2017 study commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage into the fate of satellite-tracked golden eagles concluded that "Corroborative information points to the perpetrators of the persecution of tagged eagles being associated with some grouse moors in the central and eastern Highlands of Scotland," and that "[t]his illegal killing has such a marked effect on the survival rates of the young birds that the potential capacity for the breeding golden eagle population continues to be suppressed around where this persecution largely occurs."[24]

The Langholm Moor Demonstration Project prevented the persecution of raptors, especially hen harriers, and found that grouse would survive in the presence of a more natural number of predators. However, raptor predation at Langholm reduced autumn grouse abundance by 50%, making organized driven grouse shooting unprofitable.[25] A community land project now hopes to purchase much of the land in question.[26] The Langholm experiment suggests that, to be profitable, intensive grouse moors require predators to be persecuted.[3]: 166  The RSPB reports that there seems to be a "background of illegal persecution" of raptors on British grouse moors.[27]

Shooting and poisoning are not the only methods of killing predators. Snares placed to trap foxes have injured humans.[28][29] Illegal snares have been used to kill predators on grouse moors.[30] Spring and rail traps are widely used and can kill a variety of protected species.[31]

In November 2020, the Scottish government announced that self-regulation and attempts at suppression of undesirable practices had failed. The government intends to start drafting new legislation that will impose a strict licensing regime on Scottish grouse moors, controlling raptor persecution, the burning of moorland, and mass medication with medicated grit. A joint industry statement said that Scotland already had the UK’s strictest anti-persecution measures and incidents were declining, and further regulation risked closing down grouse moors, with economic loss to gamekeepers and vulnerable rural businesses.[32]

Killing mountain hares

Mountain hares may be hosts for ticks and for louping ill virus, both of which they can share with red grouse (and with deer). In order to control tick-borne disease, some game managers have recommended killing mountain hares.[33] The only study that has been used to support this policy had no meaningful control group, used potentially confounding treatments, and there were no deer in the study area.[34] A recent study found no effects of mountain hare abundance on number of ticks on grouse, and actually found better grouse chick survival in areas with greater numbers of mountain hares.[35] The Scottish Parliament voted in June 2020 to protect mountain hares; it will be an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act to intentionally or recklessly kill or injure a hare without a licence.[36]

Economics and employment

 
Grouse shooting scene in Yorkshire – 1836 painting by John Fearnley

Grouse shooting supports the equivalent of 2,592 full-time jobs in England, Wales and Scotland, some 1,772 actually managing moors.[3]: 161  The Moorland Association estimates the total economic value of the grouse-shooting industry at some £67 million per year.[37] However, this is supported by millions of pounds in subsidies.[38][3]: 162 [39] The small village of Blanchland, Northumberland (population 140) is a centre for grouse shooting in England; 55 per cent of its inhabitants are either directly or indirectly involved in grouse shooting.[40][41]

Grouse shooting is not directly eligible for government subsidy; however, the land over which it takes place is considered to be agricultural grazing land and therefore eligible for the Basic Farm Payment. The total government funding paid to grouse moor owners is therefore hard to estimate accurately. Estimates have circulated in the press as high as £85 million but a more realistic assessment is around £11 million in 2018.[42]

The profitability of grouse shooting is under threat from both climate and disease. There has been a long-term decline in red grouse numbers.[43] Weather conditions in recent years have resulted in shortages of grouse, to the extent that grouse shooting has had to be cancelled in some locations.[44][45] This has led landowners in upland areas to substitute pheasant and partridge shooting for grouse shooting, with an increased risk of disease spreading from rear-and-release pheasants and partridge to nearby red grouse.[46]

Opposition to driven grouse shooting

The practices associated with driven grouse shooting have been criticised by many conservation bodies for harming moorland habitats and for illegally persecuting predators, particularly the hen harrier, which preys on grouse chicks. The RSPB has called for shoots to be licensed,[47] and former RSPB Conservation Director Dr Mark Avery raised a petition calling for a ban on the practice.[48] By its closure on 21 September 2016 the petition had attracted 123,077 signatures,[49] triggering a parliamentary debate on the practice, held in Westminster Hall on 31 October 2016.[50] "Because most of our birds evolved in wooded mosaic habitats, grouse moors, being burned and treeless, with just a fraction of native food plants, stifle most wildlife – most of the time."[3]: 167 

Alternative land uses

The main alternatives proposed are:

Rewilding, with ecotourism

The Revive coalition describes Scotland's grouse moors as "impoverished" and suggests that an increase in woodland and scrub cover and reinstatement of functioning bogs could result in an upland landscape composed of a mosaic of different woodland, scrub and open habitats. This would support a greater abundance and diversity of wildlife, supply improved ecosystem services, be more resilient to environmental change, pests and diseases, and provide diverse resources and sources of income for local people.[51]

However, rewilding has been opposed by shooting organizations.[52] The chief executive of Scottish Land and Estates, which represents many grouse moor owners, said: “It is recommending a complete change in the landscape of Scotland. The bonnie purple heather will give way to an unmanaged vista of scrub and scarce wildlife.”[53]

In recent years a few large estates including grouse moors have been managed for the re-establishment of a more natural mosaic of habitats. Ecotourism is often a component, and ongoing shooting, especially of deer which prevent tree regrowth and in modern Britain have no natural predators, is often essential. The Mar Lodge Estate aims to regenerate woodland including Caledonian forest. Cairngorms Connect has a 200-year vision, to restore woodland to its natural limit, including high altitude montane woodlands; restore blanket bog and forest bogs, and restore natural processes to river floodplains. These restoration projects are intended to deliver benefits to people: reducing flood-risk, storing carbon, and providing homes for wildlife, as well as great places for people to visit.[54] Anders Holch Povlsen's "Wildland" plans for his Scottish estate, some 390 square kilometres in 2019, include restoring their parts of the Highlands "to their former magnificent natural state and repair the harm that man has inflicted on them". This vision includes not just the land itself, but also its many vulnerable buildings and communities. The Rothiemurchus Forest has not been managed for grouse and presents a patchwork of woods, bogs, and heather with rich wildlife.[3]: 130–132  Alladale Wilderness Reserve, Creag Meagaidh, and Glen Affric are further examples of successful management of Scottish wildlife.[3]: 132–134  Scottish Natural Heritage estimates that nature-based tourism in Scotland was worth £1.4 billion and supported 39,000 jobs in 2018.[55]

Intensive production of timber

Plantations of Sitka spruce are almost the only form of intensive forestry that are economically practical in much of upland Britain – though not on all of it. They support only very limited wildlife.

Minimal management, sheep grazing

A former grouse moor in Berwyn, Wales, was allowed to fall out of management in the 1990s. As the area was not managed to restore its natural rich mosaic of habitats, heather was replaced by rank, ungrazed grass, few species replaced the grouse, and predators (especially crows and foxes) flourished.[3]: 169–170  The species specifically favoured by grouse moor management did particularly badly: within 20 years, lapwing became extinct at the site, golden plover declined by 90 per cent, and curlew declined by 79 per cent.[56]

References

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  42. ^ "Who owns England?". 12 August 2019.
  43. ^ Ratcliffe, Roger (9 August 2017). "Country & Coast: Lack of reverence for our only entirely native bird". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  44. ^ Keane, Kevin (11 August 2017). "Grouse shooting braced for poor season". BBC News. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
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External links

  Media related to Grouse shooting at Wikimedia Commons

April 18, 2023
driven, grouse, shooting, hunting, grouse, field, sport, united, kingdom, grouse, shooting, season, extends, from, august, often, called, glorious, twelfth, december, each, year, large, numbers, grouse, driven, over, people, with, shotguns, first, appeared, ar. Driven grouse shooting is the hunting of the red grouse a field sport of the United Kingdom The grouse shooting season extends from 12 August often called the Glorious Twelfth to 10 December each year Large numbers of grouse are driven to fly over people with shotguns Driven grouse shooting first appeared around 1850 and became popular in the later Victorian era as a fashionable sport for the wealthy The expanding rail network allowed relatively easy access into the remote upland areas of Britain for the first time and driven grouse shooting developed in tandem with this by providing shooting in a convenient and reliable form Large numbers of birds are driven over a fixed position providing a regular supply of fast moving targets without the need to seek out the birds The development of the breech loading shotgun was also an essential ingredient in the development of the practice as it allowed more rapid reloading in the field matching the availability of target birds Gamekeeper left with a shooter on a driven grouse shoot in the Scottish Highlands 1922 The alternative to a driven shoot is a walked up shoot In this form of shooting the participants walk forward in a line and flush the birds as they go either themselves or with the assistance of specially trained dogs The typical terrain and vegetation found on grouse moors means that walked up shooting is more physically demanding than a driven shoot and requires some physical fitness Shooting takes place on grouse moors areas of moorland in Scotland northern England and Wales These areas some 16 763 square kilometres in extent about 8 of the combined area of England and Scotland form an artificial habitat 1 that is intensively managed usually by regular burning to provide a constant supply of young heather and to prevent the spread of trees and grass Predators and mountain hares are also killed 2 These practices have been described as not just precluding birds of prey but also preventing wildness natural landscapes forest and bog regeneration and ecotourism 3 167 Contents 1 Description 2 Moorland management 2 1 Draining 2 2 Burning 2 3 Mowing 2 4 Killing predators 2 5 Killing mountain hares 3 Economics and employment 3 1 Opposition to driven grouse shooting 3 2 Alternative land uses 3 2 1 Rewilding with ecotourism 3 2 2 Intensive production of timber 3 2 3 Minimal management sheep grazing 4 References 5 External linksDescription Edit Shooting butts on Scottish grouse moorThe red grouse is a medium sized bird of the grouse family or subfamily which is found in heather moorland in Great Britain and Ireland It is usually classified as a subspecies of the willow grouse but is sometimes considered to be a separate species Lagopus scoticus found only in the British Isles It is also known as the moorfowl or moorbird Grouse can fly at up to 130 km h 81 mph 4 They make difficult targets but on a specially managed moor where they are driven in large numbers over prepared butts even amateur shooters can kill large numbers The name driven grouse shooting refers to the way in which the grouse are driven towards the hunters otherwise known as Guns 5 by beaters A shooting party usually includes 8 10 Guns who stand in a line in the butts hides for shooting spaced some 20 30 m 66 98 ft apart screened by a turf or stone wall and usually sunken into the ground to minimise their profile to shoot the grouse in flight 6 A code of conduct governs behaviour on the grouse moor for both safety and etiquette Red grouse Grouse moors have been described as the ultimate trophy asset one of the ultimate playthings for which people will pay well over the asset value 7 Grouse shooting can also be undertaken by walking up grouse over pointers or by flushing the birds with other dogs 8 In southern Sweden this form of hunting is called fjalljakt the corresponding biome is not managed by burning but consists of a wooded mosaic with heather trees lakes and bogland 9 Its management by in particular large wild herbivores such as moose maintains this mosaic as a stable condition with modest populations of grouse often hidden from predators in willow thickets and a rich variety of other species 3 171 173 Moorland management EditDraining Edit Large areas of grouse moor were previously blanket bogs where sphagnum moss is the dominant vegetation and drainage is required to allow heather to flourish 10 Both drainage and burning damage these bogs Burning Edit To support a large population of grouse gamekeepers burn heather between 1 October and 15 April 11 A burned patch of heather allows fresh shoots to come through which are ideal nutrition for grouse and prevents the build up of dry plant matter Burning also kills tree and grass regrowth Burning is done in patches so that there is a variety of heather heights on a rotation of between 8 and 12 years While the short new shoots provide food the taller older heather provides cover and shelter for the grouse Heather moorland is an unusual habitat worldwide almost all un natural the result of management by burning for grouse 12 13 The claim that 75 of the world s heather moorland is found in the UK is contested and has been shown to be unsubstantiated 14 60 of all England s upland Sites of Special Scientific Interest are managed for grouse shooting UK moorlands and blanket bogs are a carbon sink and burning heather releases this carbon 15 although some of the charcoal from burned heather is stored in the soil 16 Heather burning on moorland has significant negative impacts on peat hydrology peat chemistry and physical properties river water chemistry and river ecology 17 Moor burning reduces Sphagnum moss growth and the density of macroinvertebrates which play a vital role in aquatic food webs by feeding on algae microbes and detritus at the base of food chains before they themselves are consumed by birds fish and amphibians Burning also reduces the water content of the upper layers of peat so the peat is less able to retain minerals which are important for plant growth and resist acid rain 18 To minimize the damage some moorland estates managed for grouse shooting have agreed not to burn over protected blanket bogs where fires dry and burn the peat However some burning of these areas continues 2 If a moorland is not burned over for several years large stands of rank and woody heather build up posing a risk of major fires due to the large fuel loads Larger wildfires burn with greater intensity and may be more likely to burn the peat beneath 15 This risk is limited to long established unnatural heather moorland that is actively burned wildfires are very rare in the corresponding mosaic biome of southern Sweden 3 165 Mowing Edit Trials of mechanical mowing have been made to achieve the same objective of regeneration of heather Mowing produces only one seventieth as much overall carbon dioxide emissions as burning but costs approximately six times more 19 Killing predators Edit Grouse moors have a near 200 year history of killing large numbers of predators including many species that are now protected 20 Burning and predator control correlate with higher densities of red grouse and also of a few other species that are able to thrive on open heather moors golden plover curlew lapwing common redshank and ring ouzel 21 12 22 The RSPB s Investigations Team reports that in 2017 despite vast swathes of suitable habitat not a single hen harrier chick was produced on a privately owned grouse moor Illegal killing of raptors on grouse moors is widespread 23 A 2017 study commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage into the fate of satellite tracked golden eagles concluded that Corroborative information points to the perpetrators of the persecution of tagged eagles being associated with some grouse moors in the central and eastern Highlands of Scotland and that t his illegal killing has such a marked effect on the survival rates of the young birds that the potential capacity for the breeding golden eagle population continues to be suppressed around where this persecution largely occurs 24 The Langholm Moor Demonstration Project prevented the persecution of raptors especially hen harriers and found that grouse would survive in the presence of a more natural number of predators However raptor predation at Langholm reduced autumn grouse abundance by 50 making organized driven grouse shooting unprofitable 25 A community land project now hopes to purchase much of the land in question 26 The Langholm experiment suggests that to be profitable intensive grouse moors require predators to be persecuted 3 166 The RSPB reports that there seems to be a background of illegal persecution of raptors on British grouse moors 27 Shooting and poisoning are not the only methods of killing predators Snares placed to trap foxes have injured humans 28 29 Illegal snares have been used to kill predators on grouse moors 30 Spring and rail traps are widely used and can kill a variety of protected species 31 In November 2020 the Scottish government announced that self regulation and attempts at suppression of undesirable practices had failed The government intends to start drafting new legislation that will impose a strict licensing regime on Scottish grouse moors controlling raptor persecution the burning of moorland and mass medication with medicated grit A joint industry statement said that Scotland already had the UK s strictest anti persecution measures and incidents were declining and further regulation risked closing down grouse moors with economic loss to gamekeepers and vulnerable rural businesses 32 Killing mountain hares Edit Mountain hares may be hosts for ticks and for louping ill virus both of which they can share with red grouse and with deer In order to control tick borne disease some game managers have recommended killing mountain hares 33 The only study that has been used to support this policy had no meaningful control group used potentially confounding treatments and there were no deer in the study area 34 A recent study found no effects of mountain hare abundance on number of ticks on grouse and actually found better grouse chick survival in areas with greater numbers of mountain hares 35 The Scottish Parliament voted in June 2020 to protect mountain hares it will be an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act to intentionally or recklessly kill or injure a hare without a licence 36 Economics and employment Edit Grouse shooting scene in Yorkshire 1836 painting by John FearnleyThe neutrality of this section is disputed Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met January 2018 Learn how and when to remove this template message Grouse shooting supports the equivalent of 2 592 full time jobs in England Wales and Scotland some 1 772 actually managing moors 3 161 The Moorland Association estimates the total economic value of the grouse shooting industry at some 67 million per year 37 However this is supported by millions of pounds in subsidies 38 3 162 39 The small village of Blanchland Northumberland population 140 is a centre for grouse shooting in England 55 per cent of its inhabitants are either directly or indirectly involved in grouse shooting 40 41 Grouse shooting is not directly eligible for government subsidy however the land over which it takes place is considered to be agricultural grazing land and therefore eligible for the Basic Farm Payment The total government funding paid to grouse moor owners is therefore hard to estimate accurately Estimates have circulated in the press as high as 85 million but a more realistic assessment is around 11 million in 2018 42 The profitability of grouse shooting is under threat from both climate and disease There has been a long term decline in red grouse numbers 43 Weather conditions in recent years have resulted in shortages of grouse to the extent that grouse shooting has had to be cancelled in some locations 44 45 This has led landowners in upland areas to substitute pheasant and partridge shooting for grouse shooting with an increased risk of disease spreading from rear and release pheasants and partridge to nearby red grouse 46 Opposition to driven grouse shooting Edit The practices associated with driven grouse shooting have been criticised by many conservation bodies for harming moorland habitats and for illegally persecuting predators particularly the hen harrier which preys on grouse chicks The RSPB has called for shoots to be licensed 47 and former RSPB Conservation Director Dr Mark Avery raised a petition calling for a ban on the practice 48 By its closure on 21 September 2016 the petition had attracted 123 077 signatures 49 triggering a parliamentary debate on the practice held in Westminster Hall on 31 October 2016 50 Because most of our birds evolved in wooded mosaic habitats grouse moors being burned and treeless with just a fraction of native food plants stifle most wildlife most of the time 3 167 Alternative land uses Edit The main alternatives proposed are Rewilding with ecotourism Edit The Revive coalition describes Scotland s grouse moors as impoverished and suggests that an increase in woodland and scrub cover and reinstatement of functioning bogs could result in an upland landscape composed of a mosaic of different woodland scrub and open habitats This would support a greater abundance and diversity of wildlife supply improved ecosystem services be more resilient to environmental change pests and diseases and provide diverse resources and sources of income for local people 51 However rewilding has been opposed by shooting organizations 52 The chief executive of Scottish Land and Estates which represents many grouse moor owners said It is recommending a complete change in the landscape of Scotland The bonnie purple heather will give way to an unmanaged vista of scrub and scarce wildlife 53 In recent years a few large estates including grouse moors have been managed for the re establishment of a more natural mosaic of habitats Ecotourism is often a component and ongoing shooting especially of deer which prevent tree regrowth and in modern Britain have no natural predators is often essential The Mar Lodge Estate aims to regenerate woodland including Caledonian forest Cairngorms Connect has a 200 year vision to restore woodland to its natural limit including high altitude montane woodlands restore blanket bog and forest bogs and restore natural processes to river floodplains These restoration projects are intended to deliver benefits to people reducing flood risk storing carbon and providing homes for wildlife as well as great places for people to visit 54 Anders Holch Povlsen s Wildland plans for his Scottish estate some 390 square kilometres in 2019 include restoring their parts of the Highlands to their former magnificent natural state and repair the harm that man has inflicted on them This vision includes not just the land itself but also its many vulnerable buildings and communities The Rothiemurchus Forest has not been managed for grouse and presents a patchwork of woods bogs and heather with rich wildlife 3 130 132 Alladale Wilderness Reserve Creag Meagaidh and Glen Affric are further examples of successful management of Scottish wildlife 3 132 134 Scottish Natural Heritage estimates that nature based tourism in Scotland was worth 1 4 billion and supported 39 000 jobs in 2018 55 Intensive production of timber Edit Plantations of Sitka spruce are almost the only form of intensive forestry that are economically practical in much of upland Britain though not on all of it They support only very limited wildlife Minimal management sheep grazing Edit A former grouse moor in Berwyn Wales was allowed to fall out of management in the 1990s As the area was not managed to restore its natural rich mosaic of habitats heather was replaced by rank ungrazed grass few species replaced the grouse and predators especially crows and foxes flourished 3 169 170 The species specifically favoured by grouse moor management did particularly badly within 20 years lapwing became extinct at the site golden plover declined by 90 per cent and curlew declined by 79 per cent 56 References Edit Defra 21 June 2017 UK natural capital developing UK mountain moorland and heathland ecosystem accounts Office for National Statistics Retrieved 10 July 2021 a b Shrubsole Guy Cameron Alasdair 24 February 2019 Friends of the Earth sparks moorland burning investigation Friends of the Earth Retrieved 30 October 2019 a b c d e f g h i j Macdonald Benedict 2019 Rebirding Rewilding Britain and its birds Pelagic Publishing ISBN 978 1 78427 187 9 UK Driven and Walked up Grouse Shooting WhereWiseMenShoot Limited 2008 Archived from the original on 27 February 2012 Retrieved 19 June 2015 Roll Pickering John New to Pheasant Shooting Learn Driven Shooting Etiquette GunsOnPegs Retrieved 10 October 2016 Blakeley Peter F 2012 Wingshooting Stackpole Books pp 116 125 ISBN 978 0 8117 0566 0 Prince Dominic 12 March 2008 The ultimate trophy asset for the new money elite The Spectator Retrieved 28 October 2019 Grouse Shooting British Association for Shooting and Conservation Retrieved 19 June 2015 Ptarmigan hunting in the mountains Exclusive Adventure Retrieved 30 October 2019 BD5104 Restoration of blanket bog vegetation for biodiversity carbon sequestration and water regulation Final Report Defra Project BD5104 final version March 2019 Dr Andreas Heinemeyer Dr Harry W Vallack Dr Phoebe A Morton Dr Rachel Pateman Dr Calvin Dytham Prof Phil Ineson Dr Colin McClean Prof Charles Bristow and Dr James W Pearce Higgins with an Appendix by Richard A Lindsay Stockholm Environment Institute Environment Department University of York YO10 5NG http sciencesearch defra gov uk Document aspx Document 14717 DefraBD5104FinalReport pdf p 2 Heather and grass burning rules and applying for a licence Natural England Retrieved 20 June 2022 a b Aebischer N Ewald J amp Tapper S 2010 Driven grouse shooting in Britain A form of upland management with wider conservation benefits In Proceedings of the World Symposium on Hunting Activities Ecologic and Economic Benefits of Hunting The World Forum on the Future of Sport Shooting Activities Robertson P Park K Barton A March 2001 Loss of heather moorland in the Scottish uplands The role of red grouse management PDF Wildlife Biology 7 1 11 16 doi 10 2981 wlb 2001 004 S2CID 18361104 Retrieved 31 October 2016 Is 75 of the world s heather moorland in the UK What the Science Says 10 November 2020 Retrieved 20 April 2021 a b Allen Katherine A Harris Michael P K Marrs Rob H 9 April 2013 Kardol P ed Matrix modelling of prescribed burning in Calluna vulgaris dominated moorland short burning rotations minimize carbon loss at increased wildfire frequencies Journal of Applied Ecology 50 3 614 624 doi 10 1111 1365 2664 12075 A burning issue no blanket approach for blanket bogs University of York n d Retrieved 20 June 2022 Grouse moor burning causes widespread environmental changes University of Leeds 1 October 2014 Retrieved 30 October 2019 The Ember Project Effects of Moorland Burning on the Ecohydrology of River Basins PDF Leeds University BD5104 Restoration of blanket bog vegetation for biodiversity carbon sequestration and water regulation Final Report Defra Project BD5104 final version March 2019 Dr Andreas Heinemeyer Dr Harry W Vallack Dr Phoebe A Morton Dr Rachel Pateman Dr Calvin Dytham Prof Phil Ineson Dr Colin McClean Prof Charles Bristow and Dr James W Pearce Higgins with an Appendix by Richard A Lindsay Stockholm Environment Institute Environment Department University of York YO10 5NG http sciencesearch defra gov uk Document aspx Document 14717 DefraBD5104FinalReport pdf pp 5 6 Avery Mark 2015 Inglorious London Bloomsbury p 74 ISBN 978 1 4729 1741 6 Evidence Review NEER004 The Effects of Managed Burning on Upland Peatland Biodiversity Carbon and Water Natural England 30 May 2013 Retrieved 31 October 2016 Baines David Richardson Michael 19 July 2013 Hen harriers on a Scottish grouse moor multiple factors predict breeding density and productivity Journal of Applied Ecology 50 6 1397 1405 doi 10 1111 1365 2664 12154 Murgatroyd M Redpath S M Murphy S G et al 2019 Patterns of satellite tagged hen harrier disappearances suggest widespread illegal killing on British grouse moors Nature Communications 10 1094 1094 Bibcode 2019NatCo 10 1094M doi 10 1038 s41467 019 09044 w PMC 6424969 PMID 30890695 Whitfield D P Fielding A H 2017 Analyses of the fates of satellite tracked golden eagles in Scotland Scottish Natural Heritage Commissioned Report No 982 Scottish Natural Heritage Retrieved 20 April 2018 The Langholm Moor Demonstration Project Retrieved 30 October 2019 Langholm grouse moor scheme successes and challenges outlined BBC 7 October 2019 Retrieved 30 October 2019 Elliot Bob 8 August 2018 Peregrine persecution filmed in Bowland RSPB Investigations Team Retrieved 18 May 2020 Dark Peak Fell Runners News Dark Peak Fell Runners Retrieved 30 October 2019 Marshall Claire 29 April 2015 Runners injured in animal snares BBC News Retrieved 21 September 2015 Jones Howard 1 June 2016 Proceed with caution RSPB Retrieved 30 October 2019 Shorrock Guy 17 August 2018 Spring traps and grouse moors a bridge too far RSPB Retrieved 18 May 2020 Carrell Severin 26 November 2020 Grouse shooting to require licence in Scotland Guardian Retrieved 26 November 2020 Smith Adam Fletcher Kathy January 2014 Mountain hare management Game amp Wildlife Conservation Trust Retrieved 22 June 2020 Grouse Moor Management Group report Environment and climate change Farming and rural Report to the Scottish Government from the independent Grouse Moor Management Group which looks at the environmental impact of grouse moor management practices and advises on the option of licensing grouse shooting businesses 19 December 2019 ISBN 9781839604348 Retrieved 22 June 2020 Watson Adam Wilson Jeremy D 13 August 2018 Seven decades of mountain hare counts show severe declines where high yield recreational game bird hunting is practised Journal of Applied Ecology 55 6 2663 2672 doi 10 1111 1365 2664 13235 S2CID 92382362 Carrell Severin 18 June 2020 Scotland to ban mass culling of mountain hares The Guardian Retrieved 22 June 2020 Grouse moor management linchpin of upland economics and wildlife The Moorland Association 6 August 2011 Retrieved 30 October 2019 Carrington Damian 28 October 2016 Grouse shooting estates shored up by millions in subsidies The Guardian Retrieved 30 October 2019 An economic study of Scottish grouse moors an update 2010 PDF Game amp Wildlife Conservation Trust July 2010 Grouse Shooting Benefits Rural Communities The Herald dead link Middleton Christopher 6 August 2009 How Grouse Shooting Helps Rural Economies Daily Telegraph Archived from the original on 9 August 2009 Retrieved 19 June 2015 Who owns England 12 August 2019 Ratcliffe Roger 9 August 2017 Country amp Coast Lack of reverence for our only entirely native bird Yorkshire Post Retrieved 14 October 2018 Keane Kevin 11 August 2017 Grouse shooting braced for poor season BBC News Retrieved 14 October 2018 Elliott Coran 9 August 2018 Not so Glorious Twelfth Grouse shoots cancelled across Britain after stocks hit by extreme weather The Telegraph Archived from the original on 12 January 2022 Retrieved 14 October 2018 Grouse Diseases Sandhill Veterinary Services Retrieved 14 October 2018 Harper Martin 24 June 2014 Why it s time to license driven grouse shooting RSPB Retrieved 2 September 2014 Grouse Shooting amp Hen Harriers Guide Game amp Wildlife Conservation Trust Retrieved 1 November 2016 e petition Ban driven grouse shooting UK Government and Parliament Retrieved 31 October 2016 permanent dead link Business Today Chamber for Monday 31 October 2016 House of Commons 31 October 2016 Retrieved 1 November 2016 Armstrong Helen November 2019 Revive A Better Way How an alternative to grouse moors could help tackle climate change increase biodiversity and benefit Scotland s people Edinburgh The Revive Coalition Retrieved 9 December 2019 Gilruth Andrew 13 May 2019 Rewilding grouse moors not the answer our letter to The Spectator Game amp Wildlife Conservation Trust Retrieved 30 October 2019 Carrell Severin 9 December 2019 Close Scottish grouse moors to help climate report urges The Guardian Frequently Asked Questions Cairngorm Connect Retrieved 30 October 2019 Yeomans Emma 16 May 2019 Grouse moors ruin countryside expert claims The Times Warren P Baines D 2014 Changes in the abundance and distribution of upland breeding birds in the Berwyn Special Protection Area North Wales 1983 2002 Birds in Wales 11 32 42 External links Edit Media related to Grouse shooting at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Driven grouse shooting amp oldid 1129768644, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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