Irish Extra – February 2023
Happy New Year, 2023 is here and the season is running out fast with Game shooting already gone. On Monday past we began to get some snow which increased throughout the day and by the time the light faded that evening we were well and truly covered in. I put any plans for Tuesday on hold and loaded Cider and the gun into my truck and headed to check a few local spots. My farmer neighbour Johnny lost seven chickens over two nights around the Christmas period and there are several earths within walking distance so I made for them first. My daughter’s school had closed for the day and she wasn’t too keen on tagging along so we keep in touch via walkie talkie which was very handy. Our first few spots produced nothing and I was thinking of travelling a little further when I chanced below an earth on top of a hill. We had a heavy climb to it in the snow and I carried Cider as up this far the snow was higher than her and she was resembling a small hairy snow plough going in front of me. We arrived at our destination and found one opening well kicked out below some Whins and Cider slipped in in with her tail wagging – A few minutes passed and I heard her familiar bay and as I stood up to move, caught the tail end of a fox which slipped out and made off up the hedge line and he had got too far for a shot. All we could do was wish him good luck and we set off back to the vehicle and tried another few places with no success – However we are venturing out again tomorrow so we will see what it brings.
No First Salmon – Yet!
Every year I have enjoyed reporting on the first Salmon of the year. Some years the Salmon reaches the January column and some it reaches February, however this year it has also missed February and as of yet there have been no reports of the first Salmon. The first Salmon is quite a thing among some anglers especially on Rivers such as the Drowse or the Moy, rivers I myself am familiar with as I spent many hours here as a child with my father who is a fanatical Salmon angler and took me with him on his many trips to these rivers over the years. He fished many areas and was many times on the same bank as Jack Charlton and the many other well-known faces that fished in these areas. My father spent so much time on the Drowse in Ballina over the years he was very friendly with the local tackle shop owner and many other local anglers who he still keeps in touch with to this day.
ROI Bird Consultation
I have written many times on what I feel is the complete over regulation of wild bird shooting regulations in the Republic of Ireland. Presently, Rooks which in my area fly in their hundreds between three Rookeries in a three-mile square area are protected. Now, Rooks in my opinion are a reasonably harmless bird as far as anyone is concerned but when they get into the numbers, they are in this area they are into almost pest status. My neighbour has ongoing problems with feeding his free-range chickens and has had to come up with various ideas and devices to prevent the many hundreds of Rooks that arrive on his land at daybreak and if they can will eat literally kilos of chicken feed daily and in order for them to be shot legally, one must apply for a permit. Wood Pigeons also, to the surprise of many NI shooters have a season (Nov – Jan) and the regulations (Derogation) for shooting them out of season have been changed and tightened over the years making it more and more difficult should you want to protect crops or otherwise. The Pigeon numbers in this immediate aren’t big at all as we don’t have the tillage and the area is mostly sheep grazing, however the numbers are still a lot bigger than they were previously and an increase is definitely visible.
The Goose season is rather unusual and has been quite obviously created to prevent the shooting of Geese while allowing it as the season runs so short its over by the time the Geese arrive and makes absolutely no sense at all. Recently a consultation has been launched into the control of wild birds and affecting what we have already discussed and I see it imperative that everyone takes part and gets their views across, as we can be sure there will be many in opposition working hard to get theirs across.
The Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage launched the public consultation and you can share your views on the Declarations by completing the online survey available on the Government of Ireland website located here https://www.gov.ie/…/b2019-public-consultation-on-wild…/ If you wish to complete the online survey you should do so by 17:00 on Friday 24 February 2023
New Year Meet raises £2000 for Charity
Well done again to the Tynan & Armagh Hunt who pushed ahead this year with their annual New Year Day meet raising a fantastic £2000 for charity. The money was split between the NI Air Ambulance and the Southern Area Hospice and was a fantastic day for all riders young and old. This is I must emphasise, only one of the many charitable events and funds raised by hunts, gun clubs and country sports organisations all year round.
Spring Time Trapping
It is almost but not quite yet, Spring Time and with that comes always for me and many others a time for the Larsen Trap. I have noticed in my own area the last number of weeks a lot of Magpie activity and there will be plenty of work for the Trap. Running a Larsen is a great conservation tool and great for younger people to get involved and help with as it is very easy. My ferrets, especially any younger ones do well on the many Magpies and often squirrels that are trapped in the springtime. Another trap I have been meaning to build for many Spring times is a ladder trap, these too are very effective on the right ground and do great again for our song bird population. For NARGC members, there is some assistance available to clubs for Vermin Control. “It now time to start thinking about vermin control. In 4 weeks’, time your vermin control program needs to start, to lower the predator load in your club’s areas. Have you enough equipment – Do you need more or some other equipment? Now is the time to order it, to have it when you need it. Apart from the obvious vermin control equipment, trail cameras and dog collars are also eligible equipment. The NARGC give a grant to RGC’s who submitted vermin returns to the NARGC competition last year. Those RGC can claim up to €1,200 when €2,400 is spent. Check with your RGC if you wish to avail of this grant to defray some of the cost of your purchases”.
Date for your Diary!
The British Shooting show 17th – 19th February 2023 is well worth attending. The Long Netter has been prepared early and flights and hotels can be obtained fairly reasonably. I am big fan of the show and find while it is large and attracts many international exhibitors it has always retained a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
Until next time…See you at the shooting show!