Discover the custom and conservation of pink grouse in Scotland with pointing canine in the course of the spring season.
July is an thrilling month for us, because it alerts the strategy of our capturing season, which begins on 12 August—often called The Wonderful Twelfth—with the opening of the pink grouse season.
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My husband Ronnie and I stay on the northwest coast of Scotland with our ten Hungarian Wirehaired Vizslas. They’re an enormous a part of our lives—they share our home and our sofas and are our household. The breed has a beautiful temperament and a boundless willingness to please, making them a pleasure to stay and work with.
Ronnie and I’ve been married for 32 years and through this time we’ve got had many working canine together with spaniels, Labradors, retrievers, pointers, and an odd assortment of terriers. We lastly settled on the Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla breed and haven’t regarded again! All of it started 9 years in the past once I determined that I needed my very own canine to coach, work, and compete with; now I’ve 4 Hungarian Wirehaired Vizslas that I’m proud to name my very own.
Spring and summer time grouse counts
Our canine haven’t been on the “hill,” which is what we name our open moorland, because the center of April’s spring counts. That is in order that we don’t disturb the ground-nesting birds throughout their breeding and nesting season.
Spring counts often start on the finish of March when the grouse pair up earlier than breeding. We do a pattern rely on a selected piece of floor (block counting) to evaluate the variety of grouse pairs which might be current, as grouse are territorial in the course of the breeding season. The identical space of floor is then counted in the identical means in the direction of the tip of July or the start of August constituting the summer time counts. This offers us an excellent information as to how effectively these grouse pairs have reproduced and the way effectively the chicks fared.
Right here on the northwest coast of Scotland, our grouse want all the assistance they’ll get. Our space is especially harsh for the grouse with not a lot cowl and ranging levels of unhealthy climate. Each an excessive amount of rain and too little could be detrimental. Younger grouse chicks depend on a strict food regimen of bugs for his or her first ten days of life however a chilly Might can delay insect hatch, jeopardizing the chicks’ survival.
Crimson grouse (Lagopus lagopus scotica) is a subspecies of the Willow Grouse, however not like the Willow Grouse, it doesn’t develop white plumage in the course of the winter and it survives on a staple food regimen of primarily heather. The standard of heather has declined over the previous few a long time on account of overgrazing by sheep and pink deer in addition to industrial forestry. The place we stay, the crofters (small tenant farmers) wish to burn the heather nearly indiscriminately to enhance the grass for the sheep. While burning heather (“muirburn”) could be excellent administration for grouse too, it needs to be achieved in small patches moderately than en masse. The grouse additionally should deal with vermin, a few of that are protected by legislation.
The primary purpose for counting in July and early August is for the gamekeepers and the land managers to handle their upcoming capturing season. These women and men work laborious all year long to handle their wild inventory in the easiest way potential. Their work advantages not simply the grouse but additionally a wide range of wildlife on their floor, together with the golden plover, snipe, curlew and lapwing.
Aside from working our canine on our personal floor the place we stay and work, we are sometimes requested to assist different gamekeepers and property house owners rely their floor. It is a great expertise for us and our canine as a result of it provides us the chance to see completely different floor and spend time with like-minded folks.
This yr, we had been very lucky to be requested to assist rely a bit of floor within the Cairngorm mountain vary. This was the primary time we had been to that property. The climate was extremely popular that week, so it meant an early begin to beat the warmth. We had been on the hill by 7:00 AM, having pushed two hours on essential roads after which an hour up a mud monitor street to get to the place we would have liked to be. We labored a big piece of floor with seven canine: 4 German Shorthaired Pointers and three Hungarian Wirehaired Vizslas.
To conduct the rely, we unfold out in a line and began off within the shadow of a really giant hill with very moist floor due to a heavy dew. There was a number of early morning mist that got here and went, however for the primary hour I might hardly see the handlers on both aspect of me. Sadly, there was completely no wind—not a breath—making circumstances for the canine very troublesome. Our buddy counting on the prime of the road got here throughout essentially the most coveys, however the younger had been very immature and little doubt a product of a second clutch.
After an hour we got here out of the shadow into vibrant daylight and all of the canine immediately slowed down, as did their handlers. One other couple of hours of working the canine in very difficult circumstances introduced us to the tip of the “beat” the place we congregated to debate our morning. The wind was nonetheless non-existent, so the biting bugs had been out in pressure. We walked again to the vans, parked subsequent to a good looking loch (lake) the place the canine might swim while we had an exquisite picnic and an excellent chat.
The entire variety of grouse counted was 60.
For comparability, the largest quantity counted in earlier years was 400 grouse. This yr’s end result was an enormous discount and really disappointing, however not surprising. This floor sits at 1700 ft of elevation; in Might they’d a pair ft of snow that stayed on the bottom for every week or so, adopted by a really chilly snap which might have restricted the insect life.
The surroundings was completely breathtaking and, regardless of the shortage of birds, all of us loved a most memorable morning. It’s at all times spectacular to see so many canine working so effectively collectively.
The function of the canine in the course of the rely
Summer time grouse counting requires cooperative and well-trained canine. The canine should be very regular as a result of they typically come throughout younger chicks that can’t fly very effectively. If the grownup birds lose their first lot of younger, they’ll have a second clutch, but it surely’s often a smaller hatching. These very younger birds are evident once we are out counting; not solely does this require excellent steadiness from the canine, however we additionally must watch out to not step on them!
There are additionally many mountain hares on our grouse moors, which could be fairly difficult for some canine. We do not need any hares or rabbits on the bottom the place we stay and work, so our canine are unaccustomed to the hares they encounter on a rely; a pointy response to the cease whistle is essential! We’re additionally more likely to encounter sheep that act as “tick mops.” Ticks are very problematic for the Crimson Grouse as a result of they cross on the Louping-In poor health Virus, which may trigger as much as 80% lack of chicks. Crimson Grouse may also be severely affected by Strongylosis (Strongyle worm); to counter this, medicated grit prescribed by a veterinarian is put out on to the moor to manage the parasite.
Watching canine working the bottom throughout a rely is admittedly fairly great. After they come on level, I at all times catch my breath, extra so when our canine are working with different canine that they don’t know. The working partnership and respect that they present one another is spectacular. There’s nothing higher than watching a canine use their wonderful nostril to work out the place the birds are, adopted by an explosion of grouse rising into the air and flying in all instructions with the canine standing nonetheless, watching in awe.
I’m additionally fascinated by the completely different kinds of pointing among the many canine. Most of our canine do not need docked tails, because it was unlawful in Scotland till June 2018. Our youngest two canine had been born in November 2018, so they’d a fraction of their tails docked. A number of of our canine stand stock-still on 4 legs when pointing, some with their tails up and a few with their tails straight. A number of will go right into a crouch with a lifted entrance paw. A number of will feather their tails till their level is stable. Studying the physique language displayed by the canine is so informative for the handler.
Outcomes and observations from the season
On the entire, the summer time grouse rely this yr has not been excellent. A dumping of snow in Might adopted by every week or so of chilly, laborious climate has taken its toll on the younger birds. A number of of the estates the place we’ve got been counting have determined to chop again their capturing days, or modified their pushed grouse days to shooting-over-pointers days.
We spent a day counting with some buddies, one in every of whom got here up from London for the summer time counts, on a well-established Speyside grouse moor. Pointing canine house owners will at all times leap on the probability to grumble rely with their canine!
We had been on account of rely quite a lot of separate blocks on the property, the primary being a flat piece of barely moist floor comprised of medium-aged heather and blanket bathroom. The plan was to hunt this block to the far finish, flip and hunt again once more, thus splitting the block into two halves. All in all, earlier than the offset it regarded like a promising piece of floor to harbor grouse.
Situations initially weren’t best; it was very calm with a light-weight again wind. Nonetheless, the canine coped with the circumstances effectively, working out forward of us and quartering again in the direction of us to make use of what little wind there was to their benefit. Though quite a lot of pairs had been discovered on the outward hunt, we discovered only a few younger birds. On the return hunt, the bottom was barely extra favorable with higher wind, and we began to choose up a couple of sturdy, well-developed coveys.
As soon as again on the vans, we concluded that the result of the rely was a little bit disappointing in that numbers had been decreased in comparison with earlier years’ counts. This specific piece of floor will in all probability not be shot over this yr.
Our subsequent block of floor was an additional 5 miles into the hills. The circumstances had been significantly better, with a correct breeze, regardless of it being a cheek wind. The bottom was of fine high quality, with areas of well-burnt heather offering the right surroundings for grouse to thrive. After a sluggish begin, we acquired into some sturdy coveys with excessive numbers of younger birds. We additionally got here throughout a number of mountain hares on at the present time, which at all times provides pleasure for the canine. We had a few nice factors on widespread snipe. General numbers on this second piece of floor had been up on final yr, which means that in some unspecified time in the future in the course of the upcoming season this floor might probably be shot over.
Certainly one of our favourite locations to rely grouse is in Perthshire. This specific rely takes place a little bit later within the season due to the altitude of the bottom that we rely. Which means that the birds’ breeding season takes place barely later than on the decrease grounds. The bottom itself is a really lengthy corrie, which is a excessive valley with a again wall and steep sides. It takes about an hour of strolling to get ourselves into place to begin the rely. 4 or 5 handlers with canine line up the hill and begin to stroll your entire size of the corrie, working our canine and counting grouse coveys as we go. We’re all in radio contact with one another with a purpose to ensure that no birds are double-counted. Because the birds flush, we should shortly determine grownup and younger birds and file the knowledge. Some estates additionally wish to know the numbers of mountain hares and if any deer are seen. The whole morning is taken up counting one aspect of this corrie. Upon reaching the tip of the primary aspect, we cease for a well-deserved picnic lunch, after which we line up on the hill once more to rely the other aspect. The one drawback is that we often must work the canine downwind on one aspect, which slows the method considerably. Being the fittest out of the bunch, we usually must take the excessive floor which suggests strolling a lot additional. However the perfect a part of being on the excessive floor is that we regularly get factors on ptarmigan. We love ptarmigan!
After the lengthy and tiring day, we assemble for refreshments to compile all of our particular person rely figures.
On our house floor, the grouse numbers have by no means been traditionally excessive and, coupled with a couple of poor seasons weather-wise, we battle to search out sufficient birds to really shoot. Consequently, we won’t be capturing them this yr and probably not even subsequent yr, as a substitute working laborious to enhance their surroundings within the hope that we are going to have extra profitable breeding seasons to come back.
