A COMMUNITY CULL OF THE WILD
Climate change has led to an explosion in deer numbers, but why opt for indiscriminate slaughter by professional cullers when the European tradition of locals taking one for the pot is a viable alternative, says Morag Bootland
Red deer numbers need to be checked and community hunting might be the answer
“The Harris community is involved in deer stalking on their local estate
Kill it, cook it, eat it. It’s a simple mantra that should provide us with an ethical way of eating meat. But for your average Scot, acquiring your own venison for the pot isn’t really an option. Stalking prices for a stag are £400-£750 plus a hefty tip, and you won’t own the meat of the animal that you kill (which, if shot during the rut, is barely edible anyway).
Trophy hunters pay top dollar to stalk Scotland’s deer and in order that their prize is ensured landowners are happy with high deer numbers. And numbers have never been higher because, in the absence of the cold weather which used to keep deer numbers in check, Scotland’s red deer population has doubled in the last 50 years and now sits at around 1.5 million. Deer numbers are out of control and their proliferation is doing significant ecological damage.
Deer feed on the shoots of young trees, making woodland regeneration impossible where they live in high numbers, without using extensive and expensive fencing. This in turn damages valuable peatlands and reduces habitat for other wildlife. Deer numbers forces them off the hills in the search for food, with Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) estimating that there are 12,000 deer-related traffic accidents each year.
Our deer population produces 5,500 tonnes of methane each year: a 20% reduction in numbers would save the same amount of carbon as eliminating 15 million car miles. Let’s not even get started on how deer carry the ticks which spread Lyme disease.
Deer management divides opinion. Traditional shooting estates struggle to keep control of numbers, especially with hinds which are more elusive and less popular with traditional stalkers. The sad result of over-population is mass culls by specialist hunters, especially on land owned by conservationminded organisations like SNH, Forestry Commission, Anders Povlsen’s Wildland, the John Muir Trust and the like. These richly incentivised cullers are only interested in numbers and will often shoot the best breeding stock, while some of their excesses – such as at Glenfeshie, where walkers were disgusted to find the hills littered with carcases shot from a helicopter and then left to rot – are patently unacceptable.
But what if there was another way? What if keeping deer numbers under control could provide access to hunting for many more people? What if it could invigorate rural communities and help them to thrive?
Community hunting is widespread in Europe and there are already working models in Scotland. The communityowned North Harris estate is a great example of how this can work. Here, deer rights are split between The Harris Stalking Club and Amhuinnsuidhe Castle. The castle leases land on the west of the estate from the North Harris Trust so that its guests can pay to stalk stags in the manner of a more traditional hunting estate. The land on the east is used by The Harris Stalking Club which was set up in 2014.
Karen MacRae is the Development Officer at the North Harris Trust and is also a member of the stalking club. She told me about this unique partnership.
‘The stalking club is open to applications from people in Harris and South Lochs. There’s an upper limit of 25 members and there are currently 23. The annual membership is £50, including insurance. The cost for a hind is £10 and for a stag it’s £80. So members get to go out stalking at a much reduced
1.5m There are currently around 1.5 million red deer in Scotland.
12,000 There are around 12,000 deer related traffic accidents in Scotland every year.
5,500 Scotland’s deer population produces 5,500 tonnes of methane each year.
10 The maximum number of deer per sq km as recommended by the Scottish Government.
rate. It serves our purpose at the Trust because it helps with deer management. If we didn’t have the club we would have to employ stalkers. It doesn’t generate a great deal of income, but it does a job.’
The Trust monitor deer numbers and health and receive detailed returns from castle and club stalkers in order to feed back as much information as they can to SNH. ‘We have an agreement with SNH as to how we manage the land,’ says Karen. ‘On the west of the estate we have a number of designations. We have a SSSI, we’ve got a special protection area, a national scenic area and a special area of conservation, which is why we’re really interested in monitoring what impact the deer are having on the land.’
North Harris’s deer population sits at around 1,000 animals, or 4-5 deer per square kilometre. A Scottish Government review of deer management published earlier this year showed that current numbers on some of Scotland’s estates are as high as 15-20 deer per square kilometre.
‘The club means the community is involved in stalking on their local estate,’ Karen tells me. ‘Traditionally this isn’t a game for your average guy on the street, but the mindset has changed here. We all have the opportunity to be involved. And there’s the obvious direct benefit of the venison. Every winter I get to butcher the deer I take and deliver it as Christmas presents to my neighbours. It generates a lot of good feeling in the community and it’s a benefit that previously was not shared out like that. We have a husband and wife who are members and for them it is their meat for the winter, they get two hinds for £20. There are far less food miles involved and venison can be very expensive to buy, making it beyond the reach of some folk to eat regularly.’
In Norway there is a strong hunting culture and around 12% of the population are registered hunters. To ensure there are not inexperienced shots running around the hills the practice is regulated. Hunters are all registered and pay an annual licence fee. In order to appear on the Norwegian Register of Hunters you must pass a test consisting of a course as well as a theory test, the equivalent of our DSC1.
In Norway, many local people have good access to hunting through organised clubs and in many cases through longstanding family or community ties to local landowners. These private lairds are required by law to keep deer numbers at a level that does not compromise the public good, a duty which includes ensuring that numbers are kept low enough to ensure the regeneration of woodland.
This means hunting provides a sustainable food source and game is always on the menu. The ethos is to hunt animals for food rather than as trophies, which is something that appeals to many people who would like to continue eating meat but are conscious that they need to do so in a more sustainable manner.
But having something ethical for the pot is not the only benefit of being a member of a community hunting group.
It has the wider benefits of being incredibly good exercise, a great way to spend time in some of Scotland’s most beautiful countryside and the perfect excuse for a social gathering.
More community hunting could also reduce the need for costly and unsightly deer fencing that currently serves as one of the only ways to protect newly planted woodland from the vast numbers of deer. The Scottish Government has set a target of increasing Scotland’s wooded areas by 12,000 hectares a year, this will increase to 15,000 hectares by 2024.
Traditional deer stalking is an important part of local culture in many areas of Scotland and as such should be protected, but it’s important to acknowledge that it’s not the only way.