So, folks, this is it! The moment that we have all been waiting for. The Roe rut!
When will it kick-off? Well, normally in the south of England, I reckon on about the 23rd July. Which this year I note is on a Tuesday and is not, thankfully, during a full moon. So far, so good. But what about the miserable weather that we have been having?
Well, I commented on this subject last month, suffice to say, it may be a smidgen later, but I’ll be surprised if it is far behind the norm.
One way or another, as sure as each day dawns, the dawn will come on another Roe rut. And what a spectacle it is. You can witness the rut of Red, Fallow and Sika in any park. Not so the Roebuck. This territorial, elegant little deer does not do well in parks and so the only place to witness the spectacle is in the wild, and with completely untrodden new grounds for us in both the Chilterns and Hampshire this year, we are well set to experience the best that it has to offer.
What will those grounds reveal? Well, it remains to be seen, but I know for a fact, that whilst erecting the new high seats, we have seen some very big Roebuck on the grounds over the last few weeks!
Which leads me nicely on to ‘trophy’ a word which is killing us in the press and one which is widely misunderstood. It's an expansive subject and not one that I wish to cover today, suffice to say that, although we here at County Deer Stalking & Capreolus Club are predominantly conservation hunters who harvest deer for the table, every now and then, something truly unusual comes along.
We are proud to report that a member of the Capreolus Club, under the guidance of our club stalker Tony Malkin, has claimed what is widely considered to be the largest Muntjac ever shot.
Much like the world famous ‘Bailey’ Roe heads that have been shot, the head itself is what is referred to as a ‘malform’ which means that under CIC guidelines, it cannot be measured. Were it to be measured, it would undoubtedly be a world record.
Referred to now as the ‘Malkin head’ in recognition of Tony Malkin, we are proud to be offering the unique head for sale to a collector. To read more about the head and how it can be acquired please click through here.
Which leads me neatly on to another interesting development in ‘Trophy Measuring’ and one which, during the build up to this year’s Roe rut, may be of serious interest.
Via our sister company the Shooting & Hunting Academy we are proud to have launched a Masterclass in Trophy Measuring by former BASC Measurer and top taxidermist Tom Douglas, in which the ‘Malkin head features and in which a class is devoted to Roebuck.
If you’d like to enrol on this fabulous new masterclass, a great time is now. That way when, during a warm summer's evening in late July, you ‘call’ in that once in a lifetime Roebuck, you’ll be able to assess it like a pro’. Follow this link to discover more.
That is if we ever see a warm evening this summer. Good luck!
IN Season in England & Wales: Roebuck, Muntjac Buck & Muntjac Doe.
OFF Season in England & Wales: Roe Doe, Fallow Doe, Fallow Buck, Sika Hind, Sika Stag, Red Hind, Red Stag, CWD Buck & CWD Doe.
IN Season in Scotland: Roebuck, Fallow Buck, Red Stag, Sika Stag
OFF Season in Scotland: Roe Doe, Fallow Doe, Sika Hind, Red Hind.
(Peter Jones - Editor)
