Countryside opinion blog and comment | Shooting Times

Raven research misses its target

Tim Baynes looks at why the latest research into ravens is misjudged and inaccurate

More shoots should join the CFE

How shoots can benefit from joining the Campaign for the Farmed Environment

Natural England's new powers

CLA's Christopher Price reacts to the increased powers of Natural England

Protect the Scottish uplands' future

Lord Lindsay of the Moorland Forum introdues a new porject to protect upland areas

Shooters must notify the police

PC Graham Priestnall argues the case for notifying the police of legal shooting activities

The future of snaring in Scotland

To prevent a ban, the public and MSPs must be educated in the proper use of snares

Be prepared against dog theft

Janes Hayes, of the charity Doglost, offers her views on ways to secure your dogs from thieves

No insects means no sloes

The GWCT's Dr Stoate explains how bees perform the new buzzword - ecosystem services

Is traditional stalking at risk?

Why the Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill puts traditional Scottish stalking at risk

Vote to ban raised laying cages

Tom Blades, BASC Head of Game and Gamekeeping

Shooting’s wasted Olympic funds

Peter Duffield, owner of the Dartford Clay shooting club, on why £45 million should be spent on making Dartford a legacy venue for the 2012 Olympics

DEFRA's game code gets it right

Charles Nodder thinks that everyone with an interest in reared gameshooting should be please with the draft code for game rearing published by DEFRA last week

Our uplands in 50 years' time

Lindsay Waddell airs his views on Natural England's new "Vision for the Uplands 2060 document"

Promoting Scottish Fieldsports

Established in 2005 The Scottish Country Sports Tourism Group (SCSTG) markets and promotes Scotland's world-class fieldsports

Why Eradicating mink is crucial

Bob Chaffer - Foreman Trapper of the Hebridean Mink Project celebrates the organisation's success

No Wolves here, please

Why David Tomlinson thinks that there is not enough space for wolves in the UK

Add pigeon to the quarry list

Shooting Times reader Rober Smith airs his views as to why he thinks Woodpigeon should be added to the quarry list

Help me to reduce poaching

Due to the ever increasing number of poaching incidents being reported, Gareth Coles has been appointed the first-ever poaching priority officer for England and Wales

In My Opinion

Making stalking cheaper and more widely available is not a new one according to Douglas McAdam

Judges must boycott Woolwich

In the opinion of the Sportman's Association, the plan to erect a 62ft-high ballistic screen has added to the growing list of reasons not to hold the Olympic clayshooting at Woolwich Barracks

Bird Tax is the wrong approach

DEFRA's lattest offering, The Responsibility and Cost Sharing (RCS) scheme, or the "Bird Tax", will sadly come as no suprise to many.

Shooters need proof of insurance

My new BASC membership card has just arrived.

In My opinion

Hand engraving in this country faces challenges

A new approach to conservation

A new approach to conservation

Who polices the police?

In my opinion ... by Alan Booth, BASC's firearms enquiry officer

The Met Police are very wrong

A shotgun certificate holder who lives in London gives his view on the the licensing authority's advice issued this week on the security of guns

The birds and the bees

BBA are calling on moorland managers to set up more beehives

The CLA share shooters' vision

The Country Land and Business Association's Henry Aubrey-Fletcher

Dogs should be controlled in the countryside

As public ignorance of the countryside grows, a stronger line is needed to stop dogs disturbing wildlife, says David Frost

Buzzard deserve our protectsion

The buzzard's return to the south east of England should be a cause for celebration not culling, says David Tomlinson

Stags given vermin status

The Scottish Governments plan for an open season on stags raises the spectre of the Glenfeshie slaughter, says Alex Hogg

Field Trials - how safe are they?

The Kennel Club must prioritise safety during field trials and amend its regualtions accordingly

Clayshooters - some viewers may find you offensive

Clay shoots are no better than brothels, according to TV and radio regulators. Tim Bonner calls for a response

Shooters - do they need to notify police?

BASC's Dave Harper fears Leicestershire Police's notification scheme could lead to shooters being treated like criminals

Don't Tax Our Birds

DEFRA must scrap or radically alter its ill-considered propososals for a new tax on gamebirds

Don't back the olympics

Shooters must uphold their support from the London 2012 shooting events

The figures don’t add up

The new Home Office firearms data has been error-strewn, scant and in some cases missing, says BASCs Mike Eveleigh

The RSPB tightens its grip

The RSPBs proposal to control shooting by licensing is at odds with its so-called neutrality regarding fieldsports, says Alastair Balmain

Testing the Beretta Prevail and Perennia shotguns

This morning I had the rigorous task of visiting the West London Shooting School for the UK press launch of Berettas new SV10 Prevail competition shotgun

Foreshore ferrting

Selena Masson watches a masterclass on a Suffolk estuary as Shooting Timess ferret man, Simon Whitehead, sets two lurchers and 12 hungry ferrets on a vintage warren