May

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.

Over the past six years, I've been lucky enough to have grown not one but two successful businesses from scratch, both of which I believe are valued assets within the local area and provide dedicated loyalty and a hard working ethic to the villages and venues that surround my home.

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

Black grouse were once numerous and widespread in England, yet over the last 150 years, the population has become increasingly isolated due to low breeding success, habitat fragmentation and changes in landscape configuration.

1 May marked the start of 2025’s No Mow May. This campaign, initiated by the conservation organisation Plantlife, encourages us not to mow our lawns during May as a way of supporting not only our country’s flora, but the wildlife that relies on it – particularly pollinators such as bees.

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.

The GWCT has run a game shoot at Loddington since 1993, utilising the skills of a gamekeeper to carry out supplementary feeding, habitat management and predation control. The ability to carry out these tasks has enabled us to build on our research of songbird and brown hare populations, focusing on how game management techniques can influence the breeding success of these species.

It is with some frustration that I read the news reports on the recent spate of wildfires across the country...

The GWCT would urge all supporters with an interest in managed heather burning to contribute to the consultation on Defra’s proposed amendments to The Heather and Grass etc. Burning (England) Regulations 2021.