With foxes hitting local shoots, it's time to bring out the rifle and lamp, and go after them. Roy Lupton does it the oldfashioned way this time, with little reliance on thermal spotters. It's a good night – and it is, literally, 'good night' to two foxes. However, his team still had to learn to work together, and a couple more foxes slip past them.
Roy's torch: Roy is using a five-year-old Night Master Venom Strike lamp, which cost around £100 new. For Night Master's new range of lamps, visit [ Ссылка ]
Roy uses the Pulsar Accolade 2 [ Ссылка ]
Roy is also sponsored by Leica: [ Ссылка ]
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Why shoot foxes?
The British red fox is widespread across the whole of mainland Britain and Ireland. The best estimate of the current British fox population is 240,000 adults in spring, to which a production of 425,000 cubs is added annually. The fox has no natural predator and for the population to remain stable, 425,000 foxes must therefore die each year.
Fox numbers need to be managed and controlled to prevent the predation of lambs, piglets reared outdoors, free range and domestic poultry. Foxes can also have a significant impact on vulnerable species of ground nesting birds such as black grouse, partridge, lapwing and curlew (Bealey, Green, Robson, Taylor & Winspear, 1999).
In order to protect such species while they are breeding, conservators and gamekeepers aim to control fox numbers, particularly from late winter to early summer. Foxes are also controlled around pheasant and partridge rearing and release pens in late summer and autumn. Overall, the direct cost to UK agriculture from fox predation has been estimated at £12 million annually (UK Government figures)
We’re proud to promote enjoyment of fieldsports and the countryside. There are three guiding principles to everything we do on Fieldsports Channel:
▶ Shoot responsibly
▶ Respect the quarry
▶ Ensure a humane, clean and quick kill
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