Blogs

The Advisory team play an important role in disseminating our applied practical research to the managers of the countryside via a series of events and visits held throughout the country, including training courses and face-to-face visits.

25 years of the Purdey Awards have brought recognition to many shoots, vividly demonstrating the strong link between game management and conservation, but there are surely many more shining examples out there, so let’s look forward to celebrating many more in the years to come.

Response to a new study on ticks, Borrelia bacteria and Lyme disease potential in relation to pheasant release pens.

NatureScot has informed us that the implementation of the licensing scheme for operating spring traps and corvid traps in Scotland will be delayed at least until autumn 2025.

Defra will shortly publish an updated GL43 licence and guidance for 2025 for the release of gamebirds on and within 500m of areas that are Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), but not Special Protection Areas (SPAs). 

It is important, now more than ever, that land managers are able to demonstrate to policy makers and the public the conservation value of the management activities that preserve our rare habitats.

The GWCT runs a Shoot Biodiversity Assessment service to help farms, estates and game managers highlight where wildlife is benefiting from the shoot, identify any areas where there may be potential negative impacts, and work to improve them without affecting the running of the shoot.

The GWCT Advisory Services in Scotland offer Muirburn Planning Services to assist estates in obtaining the right muirburn licences. We have developed spatial datasets over several years through collaboration with estates. These datasets operate at a much finer scale than NatureScot’s Peatland Map and take into account other environmental factors important for planning muirburn.

The GWCT’s annual Game Conference is promising to deliver an excellent line-up of speakers and a day packed with insightful and informative talks. This year’s event will take place on Tuesday 18 March at the charity’s headquarters at Fordingbridge in the New Forest.

We’re running three full-day courses across the country, covering fox control, corvid control and tunnel trapping for small mammals.