-
4 Minute Read
Written by Mike Swan, GWCT Head of Education
The cry “Woodcock” gets everyone on the shoot excited, and no wonder, we are all fascinated by this elusive and enigmatic bird. We may consider it a game bird, but really it is a wader, more closely allied to curlew, lapwing and redshank...
-
By Mike Swan, GWCT Head of Education
We all believe in The Code of Good Shooting Practice, don’t we? Well, we certainly should, because it has been written by our representative organisations as set of principles that any decent sportsman or woman should not just accept, but embrace and promote....
-
By Mike Swan, GWCT Head of Education
5 minute read
Photo by Christopher Wills
“Yes, but you only do it for the pheasants really.” How many times have I heard those words from some critic of shooting, when I describe the benefits of game management to conservation? My standard response is to ask w...
-
Written by Phil Warren for Gamewise Magazine. Photos provided by Sarah Grondowski.
3 Minute Read
Black grouse in the UK have declined severely in both numbers and range over the past 150 years. The last national survey in 2005 estimated 5,078 males, 3,344 in Scotland, 1,521 in northern England a...
-
By Mike Swan, GWCT Head of Education (This article first appeared in Shooting Times)
5 minute read
With the shooting season now over, the first signs of breeding are already upon us. Cock pheasants have their wattles and ear tufts up as they strut their stuff in front of the hens, grey partridge...
-
3 Minute Read
The GWCT has observed the trophy hunting debate with interest given its connection with conservation motivations. The call for a ban has largely been led by conservation and animal welfare charities who object to trophy hunting from an ethical, moral and animal welfare perspective....
-
3 Minute Read
By Ruby Woollard, GWCT Farmland Ecology Placement Student
The Owl Box Initiative project carries out a range of monitoring activities to understand more about local barn owl populations and their use of habitat. To help achieve this, small mammals have been monitored using ink track...
-
By Max Wright, Research Assistant, GWSDF Auchnerran
Whilst in the UK rabbits are widely considered pets, within rural communities they are more often than not regarded as pests. Moreover, there is some evidence to suggest they are not actually native to the UK, with the Romans perhaps responsible...
-
We have recently published Conserving Our Woodcock, a new guide which turns 50 years of GWCT woodcock research into practical guidance on how to provide the varied habitat woodcock require. This blog is taken from the guide, which you can download in full here.
One of the most important things ...
-
Thank you all for your help throughout 2022 in raising the profile of the great outcomes achievable from positive game management and the actions which have come from this research and actions developed by the Trust over the last 91 years.
Political and policy issues keep mounting, with the propo...
Get the Latest News & Advice
Join over 100,000 subscribers and stay updated on our latest advice, research, news and offers.
*You may change your mind any time. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.