Grouse
For many years, I have wanted to shoot grouse in Wales. I have now arranged to do so but it was not without sadness that, in the process, I learnt more fully of the decline in the Welsh grouse moors. They are largely silent now and there are few opportunities for grouse shooting available despite a number of initiatives in the thirty years that have witnessed an accelerating decline in habitat and birds.
A recent success however has given more than a little hope for the future. The Wildlife & Game Conservancy Trust (‘GCWT’) has just finished a £250,000 programme, funded by the Nature Fund (Welsh Government) which assisted 10 moorlands in Wales in restoration of the moors to bring back upland birds like the red and black grouse, lapwing, golden plover and curlew. Key to its success has been its design as a ground-up initiative. The programme brought together land-owners; tenants, farmers and local people to work together to improve roads and tracks to allow access but leave the habitat unharmed; improving water quality and a drive to improve keepering and predation control to enhance the chances for bird reproduction.
Harry Legge-Bourke of Glanusk Estate can rightly claim some authorship in the completed GCWT programme. His Estate contains one of the 10 moors that benefitted from the recent completed programme. A key track was re-built and it has successfully attracted the feet of thousands of ramblers, keeping them off some of the fragile moorland habitat of the Black Mountains. It is Legg-Bourke’s aim to try to get the population of grouse back to 5 to 10 pairs an acre in the next 20 years, up from a total population currently estimated at perhaps 50 brace in total on some 16,000 acres. Legge-Burke’s innovative approach, The Black Mountains Partnership, will include being part of a new initiative of the six major landowners; the National Parks Authority; Natural Resources Wales; Welsh Water; the 100plus members of the Black Mountains Growers Association; the National Trust and Nature England (as the moor spills into England). The desire of Legg-Bourke and the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust to run another, larger, inclusive conservation programme for users, owners, farmers and sportsman represents the very best of what we need to bring back the grouse to Wales.
Black grouse and/or relatively more numerous red grouse can be found in Wales on:
- The Harpton Estate – Radnor Mountains
- The Vivod Estate near Berwyn
- Nantyr Estate
- Llanarmon
- Rhug Estate – Corwen
- Rhiwlas Estate
- Hendwr
- Ruabon
- Pale Estate
Until the mid 1980’s some of these estates offered driven shooting. There is no driven rouse shooting in Wales now. Some offer walked up shooting but there are very limited populations of black or red grouse. For instance, Vivod counted 20 pairs of red grouse last year and 6 lekking males of black grouse in 2013.
It was estimated by Catherine Hughes of the CGWT that 80% of Welsh grouse are to be found on Ruabon moor; 200 black grouse males and 600 red grouse were counted in 2014 with 12-15 pairs of breeding curlew and two pairs of golden plover. Owned by the Williams-Wynne family since 1850, this moor holds the Welsh record for driven red grouse shooting, a day bag of 1,565 birds in 1904. The walked up shooting undertaken each year yields a bag of up to 30 birds. However, the Estate has offered driven red-legged partridge shooting since 1997 and this and the two keepers required, have no doubt contributed hugely to the retention of grouse.
The 4,000 acre Pale Estate at Llandderfel Bala, a favourite of Queen Victoria, has: driven pheasant and partridge; pigeon; woodcock; mallard and teal but three times a year, you can walk-up grouse over springers and cockers. Four guns can shoot 8 to 10 brace on the 12th days of August, September and October. I’m told by Bob Glynn (the agent) that this year is fully booked but it offers one of the few remaining chances of shooting Welsh grouse. I’m booked in.
rogerpwilliams 