More shot pheasants dumped in the countryside, this time in Suffolk.
These were photographed by @pjcantwell76 on 28th December 2020.
That’s Suffolk added to the growing list of areas where this disgusting behaviour has been reported, including Cheshire, Scottish borders (here), Norfolk (here), Perthshire (here), Berkshire (here), North York Moors National Park (here) and some more in North Yorkshire (here) and even more in North Yorkshire (here), Co. Derry (here), West Yorkshire (here), and again in West Yorkshire (here), N Wales (here), mid-Wales (here), Leicestershire (here), Lincolnshire (here), Somerset (here) and Derbyshire’s Peak District National Park (here).
More to follow…..
Raptor Persecution UK 
I was recently chatting to a colleague who shoots who told me about a large pheasant shooting estate that has just installed a second incinerator……….
AKA a lead smelter?
I believe lead can be carried in hot gasses through flues. It was how some Pennine smelters worked. See – http://www.allenmill.co.uk/heritage
Would anyone know if it could be worth reporting for potential pollution hazard? There is no safe minimum for lead, or so I understand.
Interesting sog.
On a more serious note there are very strict rules for disposal of ‘animal by products’ (ABPs) and I wonder if this estate has their incinerators registered/approved. Part of the rules is record keeping so, in theory, the estate should have records of what, when and how many ABPs were incinerated. See here for more info: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/animal-by-product-categories-site-approval-hygiene-and-disposal#disposing-of-abps
The shooting fraternity are just taking the piss. Their attitude to the Law, Nature, Common Decency, Public Feelings, even the birds they shoot for “sport” are all treated with disdain. They know that these bundles of birds will be found and that the general public will be disgusted by such action. They also know the chances of a prosecution are close to zero. What sick minds think this type of action is clever???
Unfortunately the general public dont care at all I was amazed the other night watching Christmas University challenge when a team of four adults could not come up with the name Goldfinch given a full description with emphasis on thr red face the majority of people on the planet are so removed from the natural world that it has no chace at all.
The likelihood of them reading ANY article on wildlife is to say the least remote and the chances of them understanding what secondary poisoning is when poisons and lead is introduced to the food chain are non existent.
Did you enjoy Paxman’s mangling of their binomial names?
“Long tailed tit” for christ sake … Jesus … it’s not like it’s university challenge
[Ed: Thanks for the info, Ray. This incident needs to be reported to Kent Police, preferably by the person who witnessed it but if they’re reluctant for whatever reason, please report it anonymously so that least there’s a record. I’d also advise you alert the RSPB Investigations Team asap. Tel: 01767-680551 or email: crime@rspb.org.uk Thanks]
The shooting industry will say and do absolutely nothing about this, because it’s a direct consequence of the business model they wholeheartedly support. To see an end to scenes like this, game shooting needs to be fundamentally changed, meaning each shoot has to justify its own existence and a complete end to driven days where numbers of bird shot is the primary attraction. If shooters see this as an ‘attack’ on their way of life, that’s their own fault for building a personality around a completely unsustainable and inherently cruel practice.
I understand the carcasses from dead birds shot by pheasant shoots, and not consumed as food are classed as waste and are subject to environmental legislation.
Dead birds dumped in the countryside is basically fly tipping.
Maybe those finding these dumped birds would consider reporting each incident to the local authority as fly tipping.
If the scale of this is such that these dead birds pose an environmental risk or a risk to human health due to the rotting carcasses, and the subsequent collection and safe disposal becomes a burden for the local authority, then we might actually see local authorities put pressure on government to do something.
Fly tipping is something many local authorities take quite seriously and are usually keen to prosecute if the offenders can be identified.
Those responsible for the dumping of these birds are also shooting birds outside the codes of practice produced by the BASC, which as one of its five golden rules in its publication of guidance for shooters clearly states:
– “Respect for quarry is paramount. It is fundamental to mark and retrieve all shot game which is food and it must be treated in accordance with the Guide to Good Game Handling.”
Clearly dumping unwanted dead birds in the countryside or at the roadside is not acceptable, and I suspect there will be many within the game shooting world who will be just as angry by this fly tipping of dead birds, as readers of this blog.
But it is also another example of the shooting industry not be able to manage many of those who shoot, and demonstrates just how much criminality there is within the industry.
What other codes of practice or guidance produced by shooting organisations is also being blatantly ignored??
I think we already know the answer to that question!!