When the birds go barmy over barley

“The rich, milky grains of laid barley prove irresistible to woodpigeons”

This is an incredible but difficult time of year for pigeon shooters. Many will walk around the British countryside, dreaming of winter rape flocks and wondering what has happened to all the birds. Some will have packed the gun away altogether, excitedly anticipating the first oilseed rape or winter barley stubbles instead.

However, the pigeon shooters who behave like this are not pigeon shooters at all — they are glory seekers. They want the good times and are not prepared to put in the hard graft to manage numbers during the leaner times. Because they only come