Stealing a marsh on the flightiest of foes

Shooting snipe is a pretty specialist form of game shooting. Not many people have the desire, passion or opportunity to take on this brilliant adversary. A common snipe’s flying ability right from flushing certainly matches that of its bigger cousin, the woodcock. The snipe is often a feature of the uplands but its habitat is varied and they can be seen across the country from boggy marshes, to reeds to wetland to flooded grazing fields and ditches.

We have three snipe species in this country. The first, the common snipe, is the only one that makes superb eating. The second is the jack snipe, which is protected, as is the third species, the very rare great snipe. Once more commonly seen on these shores, sightings of great snipe are now few and far between. There were