Temporary Closure of Hunting (Open) Season for Birds Extended to 30 December

Octopus

The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has extended the temporary closure of the hunting season for wild birds due to the recent freezing conditions across the State.

The Wildlife Act 1976 (Temporary Suspension of Open Season) (No.2) (Amendment) Order 2010 further suspends temporarily the hunting of wild birds due to the severity of weather conditions from Wednesday 15th December up to and including Tuesday 21st December 2010.

Wildlife Act 1976 (Temporary Suspension of Open Season) (No.2) Order 2010 (SI 582 of 2010 [101KB])

The species concerned are Mallard, Teal, Gadwall, Wigeon, Pintail, Shoveler, Scaup, Tufted Duck, Pochard, Goldeneye, Golden Plover, Snipe, Jack Snipe, Red-legged Partridge, Cock Pheasant, Woodcock, Woodpigeon, Canada Goose, Greylag Goose and Ruddy Duck. It does not affect shooting of pen-reared birds where a licence to do so has been issued under Section 22(9)(b) of the Wildlife Acts. Applicants for such a licence should immediately contact:

National Parks and Wildlife Service,
Main Street,
Ballybay,
Co. Monaghan.
Tel: (042) 9748712

http://www.npws.ie/en/WildlifePlanningtheLaw/Legislation/WildBirdsHunting/

tadghbeag

It is an Absolute joke - we now have had 1 week of a voluntry ban thanks to the toss pots in the NARGC kiss arseing the NPWS now we have 2 weeks of a state ban to be reviewed on dec 21st, so in reality we could miss the guts of four to five weeks out of a already short season,

In my area we have had a thaw since last Wednesday there is no snow or ice left and the birds are out picking in the fields again, we have filled up the hoppers and fed all the non frozen water we could during the cold spell - we wait all year for a short hunting season and then it arrives and we close it because of ice and snow - :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

deeksofdoom

Its Gormley acting the bo11!ix, anything to throw up a roadblock to hunting, fishing or shooting. Sure didn't he leave it til the last minute to issue the licenses for capturing hares as well this year.

terminator2

its gone beyond a joke now

Grizzly 45

The Cent is finally dropping here....;):rolleyes:.
Bet you will see another Tempoary ban on the 21st ,the 28th,and half January as well if the weather goes ,as it proably will like last Jan.
IOW write off another 3/4 weeks of the season.
Tiddlywinks anyone???:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

mallards

Octopus wrote: »

It does not affect shooting of pen-reared birds where a licence to do so has been issued under Section 22(9)(b) of the Wildlife Acts.

Has anyone applied for a license? What does it cost? What is the criteria for getting one? Sorry, it doesn't affect me as it's not my jurisdiction, but I just wondered why stop the majority of shooting as they would be mostly released birds? I am still shooting the released birds up North, with consideration for the protected species, like staying off the snipe bogs or our usual woodcock and duck places. Is it not easy enough to continue shooting released birds?


Mallards

tfox

deeksofdoom wrote: »

Its Gormley acting the bo11!ix, anything to throw up a roadblock to hunting, fishing or shooting. Sure didn't he leave it til the last minute to issue the licenses for capturing hares as well this year.

Couldnt agree with you more !! It's his last vindictive stab at us because he know's his days are numbered !!

I wonder will we get a refund on our licence fee guns licenced for hunting seeing as we cant use them now :mad: Or will they see it as not having a good reason to have one now they're slashing the open season !!

Just wait noe the NPWS will prob issue a ban on deer stalking too !!

cavan shooter

tadghbeag wrote: »

It is an Absolute joke - we now have had 1 week of a voluntry ban thanks to the toss pots in the NARGC kiss arseing the NPWS now we have 2 weeks of a state ban to be reviewed on dec 21st, so in reality we could miss the guts of four to five weeks out of a already short season,

In my area we have had a thaw since last Wednesday there is no snow or ice left and the birds are out picking in the fields again, we have filled up the hoppers and fed all the non frozen water we could during the cold spell - we wait all year for a short hunting season and then it arrives and we close it because of ice and snow - :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

I must correct you, individuals in the CAI were also involved, its disappointing but no point loosing hair, go shoot a crow or magpie:) fox or squirrel plenty of days in January sorry I mean there will be a day or two in January:rolleyes:

Terrier

cavan shooter wrote: »

go shoot a crow or magpie:) fox or squirrel plenty of days in January sorry I mean there will be a day or two in January:rolleyes:

Well said Cavan Shoter !

If they had suspend the ban and the weather goes as predicted from Thursday they would have to wait 10 days again before the ban could be put back in place which would be stupid.

I understand complaints about certain parts of the country not having issues and I do agree that it should be done by province and not at a country level.

Antoennis

I have just applied for my licence. Be interesting to see how it goes!



Anthony
www.ishootandfish.ie

kildare.17hmr

How the hell are ya ment to know if your shootin a pen reard bird or a wild bird????

BoarHunter

for those who can't wait, there is always the option of releasing fresh birds in the morning, equip them with a poncho and shoot them. I have seen that done on lands where they wanted to protect the native birds for the reproduction. They were only shooting the birds wearing a poncho.

I'm not into that at all myself. I don't even shoot pheasants ... only woodcock, snipes and ducks. and i have to say i am happy that mesures are being taken to protect these wild birds on these tough days.

that's what i call being really passionate : sometimes you have to accept that despite all your efforts during the year you won't be able to shoot for a big part of the season ... that's nature, doesn't always garanty return on investment.

ferrete

i havnt seen snow wer i hunt it just normal ireland wet. this ban is a ****in joke as not all areas affected

Birdnuts

I can't understand why the ban wasn't lifted for this week given the benign weather and decent thaw over most of the country - Ok the weekend is looking rough but they could have re-imposed it then, at this rate the rest of the season is lookin a non-runner:(

brianfrancis45

This is joke and a bad one at that. To my mind , no doubt Gormless/The Greens are pushing this. Whats the betting that it won't stop there ? Now that they've pulled our trousers down, I fear that they won't stop at that and the next step is to stick it up us so I'd say its odds on that the ban wil be renewed yet again leaving us with no remaining season to speak of.

Most , if not all, decent shooting folk had respected the earlier call for a voluntary cessation of shooting wild birds during the bad freeze and many did their bit feeding ditches, drains etc... Then of course did likewise when the state ban came in.
But as usual with these bunch of muppets they try to bring in something with a one size fits all .

I haven't seen as much as a hard frost in my part of the country for well over a week , while at the same time I'm seeing a very healthy crop of berries and the birds I've seen when out for a few strolls with the dog appeared to be in good shape.

Fair enough when theres a lot of snow and a hard/sustained freeze - no decent shooting man worth his salt would be interested to pull the trigger on a wild bird who is obviously under pressure and presenting as a non-sporting shot. However, there are provinces in Ireland where the weather over the last 7-10 days has not been harsh at all (i've seen it much harsher in years gone by , yet no ban was imposed ! ) but the powers-that-be in their infinite wisdom decide to impose a country wide ban.

I wonder if the left hand knows what the right hand is doing , although in their case I have no doubt it does, as they are well practised.....

blackstairsboy

It is disappointing but what can we do. Fingers crossed we will be shooting for Christmas.;)

cavan shooter

I dont think the greens are doing this on their own, I believe there has been full and proper discussions with all shooting/hunting associations.

from NARGC website http://www.nargc.ie/site.aspx

look at the department of the environment site as well.

Grizzly 45

blackstairsboy wrote: »

It is disappointing but what can we do. Fingers crossed we will be shooting for Christmas.;)

Maybe we get onto our repersentative bodies be they NARGC,CAI etc and discuss the possibility of this ridicilous ban be done away with as our EU neighbours dont have such,and they have had,will have and do have much more severe weather [and shorter shooting seasons,which no doubt the EU and Greens will try and impose here as well.Imagine closing down Dec31st each year from Sept 1st:eek:]

Or at least bringing in a province/countywide ban.... IF the temp goes below a specific like minus 10?? For a specific time period like five days and nights?

JackSnipe

This could be a Gormley plan to appease his supporters before an election, it certainly has all the hallmarks of how he uses legislation to make it virtually impossible to continue with a sport he would like banned. look at coursing, they have a book of rules they must comply with and were only given the licence to capture hare at the 11th hour, look at Stag hunting, again more rules pushed on them which were unworkable before he ultimately banned it.
I am concerned that we now have a legal precedence in place. What is to stop him from closing the sport when the temperature in Kildare street hits zero?

cavan shooter

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Maybe we get onto our repersentative bodies be they NARGC,CAI etc and discuss the possibility of this ridicilous ban be done away with as our EU neighbours dont have such,and they have had,will have and do have much more severe weather [and shorter shooting seasons,which no doubt the EU and Greens will try and impose here as well.Imagine closing down Dec31st each year from Sept 1st:eek:]

Or at least bringing in a province/countywide ban.... IF the temp goes below a specific like minus 10?? For a specific time period like five days and nights?

I would guess that the powers that be in the NARGC will get a an ear full on why? if I was a Cynic, I would be be moaning that its a way to ensure no accidents, but there is enough conspiracies floating about, and anyway there is nothing stopping people from shooting vermin.

MarkD.

There has been no snow or frost here in 7days. Ive been talking to a share of lads and they were giving out about it too, as why would you cancel something thats forecast.

Thats like calling wibledon tennis or cricket off becasue there is a bad spell "forecast" Older men say fair enough to the ban when the weather is very bad, and I agree. But they said if the ban continues up until end of Jan which could happen, cocks the hens ratio will be out of balance. Hens will leave their nests etc etc..

Also when there is a full on game ban, the anti's will know about this an if they hear shots while your shooting crows in their area they'll be ringing the guards. And you'll have the guards annoying you, they wont have a leg to stand on but better not have them approach you no matter what.

CJhaughey

Harsh weather? What harsh weather? No snow or ice anymore, all birds are back feeding. The ban should never have been implemented IMO.
Its the old story of the Irish trying to be the Moralists of Europe.
We'll pay our way etc etc. The rest of the EU hunters are looking at us and shaking their heads in bewilderment.
If we really really HAD to have a ban it should be assessed region by region. Thats what the regional councils are regional for.
No sense in having the whole country shut down when the ground is only frozen in 2 countys.

Grizzly 45

cavan shooter wrote: »

I would guess that the powers that be in the NARGC will get a an ear full on why? if I was a Cynic, I would be be moaning that its a way to ensure no accidents, but there is enough conspiracies floating about, and anyway there is nothing stopping people from shooting vermin.

Well, in all honesty,if you cant obey saftey rules and shoot safe in appaling weather,why are you out with a gun in the first place??
You will be just as klutzy and unsafe in brilliant weather as in bad.
Bad weather should make you pay more attention to saftey anyway....oops forgot this is Ireland..Where we still drive like nutters when there is ice and snow about,and wipe ourselves out like the bunch of scobes and that woman this week in Limerick.So yeah obviously we cant be trusted to drive or shoot safe once the mercury has gone below zero degrees :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Yeah they might get an earful..But will anything be done to rectify or change????

Shooting vermin..Unless I am going to skin pelts all Winter,as I dont belive in wasting a natural resource either,and who can you flog them to these days??

terminator2

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

How the hell are ya ment to know if your shootin a pen reard bird or a wild bird????

the pen reared one is the one that stands there looking at you with the dumb expression on its face (waiting to be fed ).....the wild one is the the one that is gone like a rocket the minute you enter the field :D:D

landkeeper

well the ground round here is still frozen there is a bit of soft stuff a couple of mil but under that its solid most of the ponds and ditches are also still frozen with an inch or so of ice

EPointer=Birdss

blackstairsboy wrote: »

It is disappointing but what can we do. Fingers crossed we will be shooting for Christmas.;)

The whole arguement for a ban will unravel at the seams if we are allowed back shooting for Christmas. The weather is supposed to get harder yet the weekend for a number of days which brings us into middle of next week & the birds, according to the arguements flying around will need time to recover.

We might get out for a shot in the new year for a week or 2 max before the season is over! A 6 - 8 week season max out of 52 in a year but yet lads seem to think we will wipe out the population of birds!:rolleyes:

Its grand & all saying "if you feel the need to shoot something shoot vermin" We have 9 months of the year to do that as well as these 3. We have only these 3 for most game. For me shooting is not shooting it is hunting & hunting with a trained dog. That goes out the window when it comes to vermin control which I do plenty of all year for the purpose of having birds around for these 3 months shooting to work the dogs.

We've had 2 nights of snow in 6 weeks this side of the country & the birds are plentiful & feeding well. Drains & rivers are flowing so feeding isn't an issue as the ground beside them isn't frozen.
Have a look at this to see how they feed. They could easily still feed in non frozen mud around drains.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga5SiUU25fo

This ban is a load of rubbish due to the fact it's countrywide & as i've said before the 1 size fits all approach.

I noticed Grizzly has made the point numerous times about colder countries not banning shooting.
Why then do we know better than the rest to impose a blanket ban when our country comes to a standstill due to the roads etc & those who can manage year in year out in these conditions don't!
Are we the only EU country currently with a ban?

marlin vs

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6931756/Freezing-conditions-force-temporary-shooting-ban-in-Scotland.html

MarkD.

marlin vs wrote: »

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6931756/Freezing-conditions-force-temporary-shooting-ban-in-Scotland.html

Bet they have a miles harsher winter then us, including the present time and yet they are allowed to go for pheasant. As far as I can make out from that article

tfox

MarkD. wrote: »

Bet they have a miles harsher winter then us, including the present time and yet they are allowed to go for pheasant. As far as I can make out from that article

Believe me was born and reared in Scotland until I was 12, we dont know what harsh winters are here :rolleyes: - 15 not uncommon, '95 we hit -25 :eek:

marlin vs

MarkD. wrote: »

Bet they have a miles harsher winter then us, including the present time and yet they are allowed to go for pheasant. As far as I can make out from that article

Correct. But very few real wild pheasant's over there ,all properly managed shoot's, with people paid to do the work (even if it is badly paid)the difference is those bird's are actually taken care of in hard times.

EPointer=Birdss

marlin vs wrote: »

the difference is those bird's are actually taken care of in hard times.

I think most of the lads on this forum would argue that the birds they release are well fed...

landkeeper

alot of the countries that have harsher winters than we do still allow shooting to continue however they don't have the volume of migrants that have have evolved to come to ireland BECAUSE IT'S WARMER and they can feed whilst the regions they come from turn solid
as i have said before there is no sense in a ban on pheasant and pigeon shooting however ducks and waders are still having a hard time in some places

terminator2

took a stroll the other day with the dogs ,plenty of grain in the hoppers,seen 3 hens and two cocks and they wernt hanging around,....they didnt look lethargic to me ,3" of snow on the ground

MarkD.

marlin vs wrote: »

Correct. But very few real wild pheasant's over there ,all properly managed shoot's, with people paid to do the work (even if it is badly paid)the difference is those bird's are actually taken care of in hard times.

Fair enough ya, but I beg the question in Ireland how do you tell the difference between a wild and raised pheasant as in reality we do not mark them with some item as suggested that is done in some shoots.

Also if a club is in an area where its mild and damp rather then snow and ice, the club purchased raised pheasants, then whats wrong with shooting them if you know they are on a certain patch of land? Doesnt it come into the same context as a commercialised driven shoot? Again I re state-> in mild weather. Like we have now in North Cork.
Cock pheasant populations need controlling. In the last couple of weeks out walking (without a gun) Ive noticed on two occasions 1 hen and 3 or 4 cocks in the same field! That certainly means that the hen will leave a nest

Also banning the season as its forecasted to be arctic again is like abondoning a tennis match or cricket match as it might rain in a few days. The tennis and cricket enthusiasts would not be in favour of that, NOWAY! It would ruin the sport. They play untill it does rain

CJhaughey

There seems to be an inability in Ireland to actually manage things in a targeted way.
I am not sure why, is it because there would be accusations of bias or is it just laziness on the part of the controlling bodies/ State?

brianfrancis45

CJhaughey wrote: »

There seems to be an inability in Ireland to actually manage things in a targeted way.
I am not sure why, is it because there would be accusations of bias or is it just laziness on the part of the controlling bodies/ State?

I feel that laziness is a part of it but there is more....
Sure aren't we the best in Europe for bringing in new legislation time after time but the worst for enforcing it.

However, in this specific case, personally I feel that here we have the classic case of ''mind over matter'' - Gormless , NARGC, CAI don't mind and we shooters don't matter - simple as . Gormless gets to appease his supporters in the hope of getting votes at the next election and the level of risk for insurers is reduced considerably.

I respect every mans opinion but nothing can convince me that the
bans , previous and present, in certain provinces in Ireland was/is justifiable and especially so after most decent shooting folk had already refrained from shooting on a voluntary basis before any statutory ban came in. How difficult would it have been for Minister Gormless and NARGC, CAI , the regional shooting bodies etc.. to determine and agree which areas in the country justified a ban being imposed and which areas did not ? As ePointer mentioned before, they all just took the easy way out ( easy for them of course ! ) with a ''one size fits all'' ban. Is such a blanket ban justified ? In my opinion NO WAY as the decision seems to have been reached simply because it was convenient and advantageous for the vested interests of the so called powers that be.

I think we also need to keep an eye on developments relating to other country pursuits. What message are you left with when you consider that Gormless kept the coursing fraternity waiting until the very last minute before allowing hares to be trapped ?. Was that fair and justifiable or was it just another clear indication that the Greens are out to make it as difficult as possible for those involved in country sports ?

My main concern is that now a very dangerous precedent has been set and that this may only be the beginning......

BUACHAILL

all this proves is that as soon as you give an inch fat cats like Gormley see a chance to gain positive light for their own agenda's and swoop in.

Whats the lesson here?

Stop agreeing to voluntary bans its ridiculous we certainy were not hit hard enough for any such thing, if it gets bad enough they will enforce it either way and by the time they actually realise it its too late anyway and in my own opinion most people at their own discretion stop when the know themselves but actually allowing a voluntary ban be suggested by anybody is creating a stick to beat yourselves with. keep it to your own discretion dont give any reasons to allow idiots more control of a situation deep down they do not care about, their agenda's certainly dont coincide with yours !!

snipe02

BUACHAILL wrote: »

all this proves is that as soon as you give an inch fat cats like Gormley see a chance to gain positive light for their own agenda's and swoop in.

Whats the lesson here?

Stop agreeing to voluntary bans its ridiculous we certainy were not hit hard enough for any such thing, if it gets bad enough they will enforce it either way and by the time they actually realise it its too late anyway and in my own opinion most people at their own discretion stop when the know themselves but actually allowing a voluntary ban be suggested by anybody is creating a stick to beat yourselves with. keep it to your own discretion dont give any reasons to allow idiots more control of a situation deep down they do not care about, their agenda's certainly dont coincide with yours !!

well said thank you

pedroeibar1

Antoennis wrote: »

I have just applied for my licence. Be interesting to see how it goes!

Guy I shoot with from time to time has told me that he applied for and received a licence in two days. He had not applied for one before because for the last few years his syndicate has put out mainly cocks, a couple of hundred and about 15% hens which they do not shoot. (Anyone shoots a hen pays €20 for that year's nominated charity.)
P.

BoarHunter

landkeeper wrote: »

alot of the countries that have harsher winters than we do still allow shooting to continue however they don't have the volume of migrants that have have evolved to come to ireland BECAUSE IT'S WARMER and they can feed whilst the regions they come from turn solid
as i have said before there is no sense in a ban on pheasant and pigeon shooting however ducks and waders are still having a hard time in some places

totally agree with that. ireland is the winter destination of a lot of birds. Woodcock shouldn't be spotted feeding during the day, that's a typical behaviour in such harsh weather. Put on top the fact that most of the birds killed ( woodcock ) this season are adults ( not a good sign at all : should be 75% young and 25% adults ... ) it is important to protect the ressource. lakes are still iced over and you just need to walk the free ditches and tidal rivers to make a butchery. If a lot of hunters are well able to shoot within reason, unfortunately you will always find the ones that will never stop until the boot is full... same story than the Salmon.

we are paying for these people unfortunately.

I totally agree that people could go for pheasants in most of the counties but i also think it is great to see Ireland protecting wintering species such as ducks, woodcocks and snipes.

i see it from a foreigner eye and i really think ireland is showing a bright exemple of conservation in that way.

i understand people frustration and i really should be up to the couties to decide themselves when it comes to Pen rared birds such as pheasants

ssl

i think this ban is stupid. The weather varies dramatically nationally. if there is a going to be a ban(which i am against) let is be decided by the local rangers and only for that locality to be reviewed on a daily basis.

i don't believe that the birds are going to be any easier to shoot and im not convinced that a population threating number will fall to the elements.

Rosahane

It's very simple, Gormless is playing to his core support:p

They are "Green" insofar as they have a deep love of what they see as the countryside, usually from the coffee table tome and Christmas Card perspective. They support "county markets" and go hillwalking when they park their Prius somewhere that probably inconvienences a local before they cross a fence by climbing on the wire in case they might tear their expensive Patagonia or Berghaus jacket.

They know all about providing a balanced diet in their garden bird table for songbirds which help to sustain a vast population of local magpies and honing the killing instinct of their cats

They have no understanding or appreciation of the fact that without country sports and the deep knowledge and appreciation of wildlife that real country lovers, hunters, shooters and fishermen have, and the work they put in to sustain biodiversity, their idealised countyrside would be sterile monoculture :eek:

...and the really unfortunate thing is that they are so blinkered that they are totally unwilling to listen and see us all as uneducated bloodthirsty hillbillies:rolleyes:


PS I really enjoyed that rant

Grizzly 45

Right lets look at some historical facts...In 1964/65/proably 66.Ireland had three colder Winters than this.In 1964 there is a pic I just saw today of the Shannon River frozen solid at Athlunkard,Limerick.With people actually skating and driving motorbikes on a frozen Lough Gur in Co Limerick.Now that is cold!!!
How cold does it have to be for flowing water in that mass to freeze?? about minus 20 for a week give or take!
So lets not put it into a myth that ducks are suffering!!If there is flowing water in Winter the ducks do absolutely fine!I have hunted them in minus 20 with one of Europes major waterways[Rhine] frozen and with ice flows on it and the ducks took off with no hesitation and had substantial body fat on them to survive the Winter.
It is predicted that we will get another five to six Winters like this my friends.Are we going to lose2/3rds of our shooting season every year now because of this type of nonsense??We are not conserving or giving anything a sporting chance,we are allowing Nature to do the cull of a harvestable resource that we should do anyway.There is only so much feed we can put out,and so many birds competing for it,sooner or later nature will claim the weak by a pretty nasty method of starvation.We should be taking the pressure off the limited supplies by hunting.

Is Gormless doing this dliberatly??ASFICS there isnt any thanks from the antis on this manouvere,and they would be the first to fill up their websites and letters pages of the press with this brilliant manouvere to save the poor defenceless birdies from the wicked hunters etc etc.:rolleyes:
More than likely we have self inflicted this on ourselves by our organisations going along with it.Not that they would have much choice anyway.It is a Govt edict of law of which we would be powerless to do anything against.Gormless would just claim the credit if ever asked,[like any slimy politican would]did he sign the ban,and has of course the "agreement and cooperation"of the NARGC,etc to do so.:mad:

pedroeibar1

I think some of you have got cabin fever, even though the snow has not started yet.;) Some of the conspiracy theories posted earlier are very wide of the mark.

Firstly, neither NARGC nor CAI is an insurer. The former is a sporting body that among other things manages a fund that is used to pay claims -I’m not a member, so know little about it. CAI also is a sporting body and provides a service to its members by organizing a group scheme WITH an insurer, via a broker. CAI covers personal injury, but at low levels e.g. excluding their £10 million Public Liability cover the max award on their policy is 30k. Insurance in cold weather should not be an issue with them; cannot speak for NARGC, but guess they are the same.

It is pointless putting all the blame on Gormless, he’s just the pricket the tip of the tool, 99% of all plans are made down the line and he is the guy who signs off on implementation.

When the CAI and NARGC started craw-thumping about the hard weather in the hope of some good ‘PR’ they gave Gormless' minions an excuse to make him look like he is being ‘executive’ and a chance for them to justify their fat bonuses. He has far more important things on his mind currently; anyway, I guess, he would not know the difference between a snipe and a jacksnipe and judging by recent performance and outbursts he is shell-shocked and probably could do with a dose of ECT. His supporters are few and far between, and he, I’m sure, knows to where he and his companions will be consigned next year.

Our representative bodies have again played into the Gormless hands, they should be out saying how many feeders are being topped-up, how many wild birds are benefitting, how the shooting sportsman helps wildlife, etc. As said earlier, my mate got his licence to shoot in 2 days, so the D of Environ. is not fully staffed by morons and both NARGC and CAI should get out and meet the right people.

Rosahane – I like your rant,:D but you forgot to include the gobs#1tes who when first moving to the countryside buy a bloody big dog (s) without thought of where to exercise it/them and then allow the sodding things to run amok through plantations and undergrowth to the detriment of ground nesting birds and resting woodcock. (and they usually start with a new Barbour until they realise it is not high-tech enough :rolleyes: )
Rs
P.

PS Sorry Grizz, I was writing off-line and repeated some of your points unknowingly

Grizzly 45

N o worries P.:D
Oh add to the townie who has moved to the country complaints.Moaning and groaning about "agricultural smells";) at certain times of the year.
[Hey,get your Green buddies onto it,you could make a fortune in methane recycling plant production:D]
Giving out about horses or bulls being "on the job" in the field next their house.:D[They ARE animals Y'know.]
Bawling about your once monthly clay bust with your pals in the back 40 lot to the Gaurds,who know you have been happily doing this since time immemorial.:mad:
Only good thing with this depression will be,they will hopefully all fk off back to cheaper accomadation nearer the cities as their eco mansions out in the boonies get repossessed.:eek::D

homerhop

Des and co have lost sight of what they started out for. The major interest is the money in the compensation fund.

jap gt

a good fall of snow in north cork, nearly 2 inches and going strong, hard to see any game shooting this side of christmas

spideog7

What's the story with this, are they going to update us again today?
Probably going to extend it for at least another week given the conditions. Ruin a good St. Stephen's day out

Eddie B

spideog7 wrote: »

What's the story with this, are they going to update us again today?
Probably going to extend it for at least another week given the conditions. Ruin a good St. Stephen's day out

We always do a few fox drives on Saint Stephens day!
Thank god this weather doesn't affect my sport, vermin controll!!!
Happy day's!!:p

marlin vs

The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has
decided that the temporary closure of the hunting season for wild birds
which was extended for an extra seven days last week will be extended
again for a further week due to the continuing cold and freezing weather
conditions across most of the Country.

Ciaran O*Keeffe, Director of the National Parks and Wildlife Service
of the Department said *The weather deteriorated again over the past
few days with severe frosts and very low temperatures. This also brought
significant accumulations of snow to the west and the south west areas
which had not had significant snowfalls thus far this winter. Met
Eireann are currently predicting that sharp to severe frosts and some
wintry showers will continue for the rest of the week with a substantial
thaw only likely to arrive over the Christmas period.*

Given this Mr. O*Keeffe added that *we really have no option but to
extend the closure of the hunting season up to and including Thursday
the 30th December. While Met Eireann is predicting that mild southerly
winds will bring rain and a decent thaw on St.Stephen*s Day birds need
a few days undisturbed to recover from the cold spell so we are
extending the closure.*

Grizzly 45

Write off the season then lads!!! It will be back in Jan as well...With a vengance.:mad:
Wonder will a loss of 6to8 weeks plus of the season be a big a kick enough in our collective arses to get us to get off them and start making some noise to NARGC,the DOE and anyone else ,in time for next years farsce??Somhow I doubt it...!!!:rolleyes: