FAQ Questions

Ed · 12-09-2005, 02:17

I'm going to put together an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) to cover the legal aspects of hunting, trapping and other wild food gathering as we seem to get alot of the same questions over and over again on this subject. The final FAQ will either be placed as a sticky in the Lovely Grub and Fair Game forums or may be placed as an article on the main site (or both)

Please use this thread to post questions you would like to see answered in the FAQ .... no answers please... just questions

... also note we will only be covering the UK, so no questions about hunting laws abroard please.

I'll leave this thread running for a month or so and then start compiling the answers in some sort of sane order.

Thanks for your help

Ed
(Lovely Grub & Fair Game Moderator)

**Marts** · 12-09-2005, 09:55

Which traps are illegal and which legal in the UK - deadfalls, snares, twitchers etc.? and where are you allowed to set the legal ones?

**Ogri the trog** · 12-09-2005, 10:06

Ed,
I know that you can use Larsen traps for magpies, but does that exclude other avian species?
Also, I'm after clarification on the rules of shooting birds at night (what species and what constitutes "night")?
Then comes the unsurety of whether rabbits and hare are the same or is the rabbit vermin but the hare considered game.

There's bound to be more but that'll do for now.

ATB

Ogri the trog

**Ahjno** · 12-09-2005, 10:33

What are the legal requirements for snares (selflocking snares, location near fences, 1 or multiple strands of wire)?

**Laurence Dell** · 12-09-2005, 20:39

I know the answers to most of these but they will make good FAQ's and have probably been asked loads of times.

Tell me Ed if I am just covering old ground unecessarily.
I will add more as I think of them.

1. What is the law regarding hunting with a bow? i.e. fish being the only legal quarry in the UK.
2. What quarry are considered acceptable to take with an air rifle?
3. If a man knocks down a deer on the road & nobody sees him put it in the boot of his car is it still poaching?

I couldn't resist that one!

4. Why is there no close season for Wood pigeon, yet it is still illegal to disturb their nests?

(even though if you shoot the adults in the breeding season then their squabs may starve on the nest).

Ed · 12-09-2005, 20:45

Yeah keep 'em comming

....

Ed

**Tantalus** · 12-09-2005, 21:24

where can I fish free?

what may i gather from a field, or a common?

roadkill, can i pick it up and take it away? (presuming i just watched a pheasant bouncing off someones windshield and it just happened to land in my poachers pocket

)

Tant

**Tantalus** · 12-09-2005, 21:27

and shouldnt this thread be called FA Questions ??

Tant

**Grooveski** · 12-09-2005, 21:45

Are there any restrictions on the collection and usage of feathers? - i.e. Can I collect buzzard feathers from below a nesting site and use them for fletching?

Do boomerangs classify as rabbit sticks?

**Eric_Methven** · 13-09-2005, 00:51

Can a catapult and ball bearings be used to control vermin (like rabbits)?

**match** · 13-09-2005, 15:38

Rules on archery, spears, throwing sticks

Fishing with/without rod, and again rules on spears, nets, etc

**weekend_warrior** · 13-09-2005, 16:14

Sources of snares and components to make them and how to make 'em

**Big Geordie** · 13-09-2005, 18:03

Which of these rules differ between Sotland and rest of UK?

Can I practice with a gill net etc., to prepare for a survival situation? Is possession of it an offence, or merely its use? Of course for the words" gill net" you can substitute the other items.

Great idea Ed, it proves just how much quality there is within the site and the mods.
Many thanks,
George

Ed · 19-09-2005, 11:49

Great idea Ed, it proves just how much quality there is within the site and the mods.
Many thanks,
George

No worries..... I've been the mod of the fair game forum since its inception and I thought it was about time we had an FAQ here as some of the laws are hard to find, and there alot of misconceptions and false info out there on hunting, trapping and fishing.

Thanks for your support guys and gals

I can't write an FAQ without questions, so this is as much your work as it is mine.

Thanks again

Ed

**Swampy Matt** · 22-09-2005, 11:24

Is there anywhere that i can hunt without getting landowner permission (eg public access woods, common land, etc)?

**Rod** · 22-09-2005, 12:54

Hi Ed,

Suggestions on 'foraging' roadkill?

Not something I've spent a lot of time doing here, but if hunting and trpping are 'out' here, you've got to improvise.

We get lots of rabbits knocked down (by X5 drivers etc) and occasionally the odd muntjac - could make a good roast.

Any suggestions via forum or pm very welcome
thanks mate

**havingagiraffe** · 23-09-2005, 10:23

Originally Posted by Ed

other wild food gathering

Here are a few morequestions for you Ed.

Please could you clarify the legal difference between gathering plants which grow wild and those which have been planted commercially. For example, if someone wonders into my garden are they allowed to make tea from the naturally growing heather, but forbidden from pulling up my neat lines of potatoes?

I assume pulling up the roots or bulbs of pretty much anything is illegal?

What about taking cuttings to cultivate at home?

When does taking a cutting become coppicing?

Is there a legal difference between forraging on private land and public land (ie verges, playing fields, parks?)

I read somewhere that anything between the low tide and high tide marks on a beach is fair game, even if the beach is privately owned. Is this right?

If a tree's trunk is in field A, but the its fruit hangs over the hedge into field B, who owns the fruit?

If an agricultural animal such as a sheep or cow wanders onto my land does it become legally mine?

How often does a trap which captures an animal live have to be checked from a legal point of view? If there isn't a legal requirement, why not?

Also, a few lines on trespass might be a useful addition to the FAQ.

Thanks for taking time to answer such obvious questions which I'm sure have already been answered elsewhere on the site.

Ed · 23-09-2005, 10:53

I'll only be answering questions on wild food, hunting and trapping that come up on a regular basis. I'll not be covering domestic animal/cattle or copicing etc..... you will have to seach out any other questions you want answered in the relavant forums.

Also, a few lines on trespass might be a useful addition to the FAQ.

Check out the first of Dan Sharp's articles here
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/content/a...showarticle=93
more to follow

Ed

Ed · 04-10-2005, 11:16

Just added below bardsandworriors origional post from another thread which prompted this FAQ sticky.... just so it all together in one thread where I can find it

Originally Posted by bardsandwarriors

Animals you cannot catch - blah blah blah
Birds you cannot catch - flap flap
Protected fish - gurgle gurgle
Traps you must not use - etc
Traps you can use but not on sundays if it's raining - etc
Animals you need a license for -

Illegals ways of catching bunnies -
Illegal ways of catching squirrels -
and so on for every animal and fish

Ed

Ed · 17-10-2005, 12:28

Ok guys and gals... I've had this thread building for a month or so now and we have gathered loads of questions for the FAQ. I'm going to lock this thread now, but any other questions you think may need to go in, please feel free to pm to me

The FAQs will be ready in a couple of weeks and will appear on the main site with links to it in the forums.

Thanks again to all those who have helped

Ed

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