Seed of contention

“Birds were decoying like it was a spring day over a fresh drilling”

Not so long ago, decoying pigeon over oilseed rape was as much a part of winter sport as driven pheasants or grayling fishing, but all that has changed. Over the past three years, there has been a mass exodus away from planting the brilliant yellow brassica. To be specific, there has been an estimated 75% reduction in the amount of winter oilseed rape being grown. The banning of neonicotinoids to control flea beetle, increasing costs of fertilizers and ever-wetter winters have all resulted in a general move towards habitat enrichment over oilseed rape.

Pigeon density

It is probably not the case, however, that the birds aren’t still around; it’s just that they aren’t in the places we might expect them to be. Pigeon are still breeding incredibly well during peak breeding season. They are having at