Glorious Twelfth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Glorious Twelfth is usually used to refer to August 12, the start of the shooting season for Red Grouse (Lagopus lagopus scoticus) and to a lesser extent the Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta) in the United Kingdom. This is one of the busiest days in the shooting season, with large amounts of game being shot. It is also a major boost to the rural economy. The date itself is traditional, the current legislation enshrining it is the Game Act 1831 (and in Northern Ireland, the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985. It should be noted that not all game (as defined by the Game Act 1831) have the same start to their open seasons - most begin on September 1, with October 1 for Woodcock and Pheasant.
Since the start of the season cannot, due to UK law, begin on a Sunday, it is sometimes postponed to August 13, as in 2001[1] and 2007[2]. Grouse are not and never have been reared to any extent for shooting, a fact often wrongly published in the media. Due to this, grouse numbers fluctuate naturally from year to year. In recent years, the Glorious Twelfth has also been hit by hunt saboteurs, the 2001 foot and mouth crisis (which further postponed the date in affected areas [3]) and the effect of sheep tick, heather beetle, and the gut parasite Trichostrongylus tenius [4]. In some seasons where certain moors are hit by low numers of grouse, shooting may not occur at all or be over by September.
Due to severe flooding and bad weather during summer 2007, several moors had to cancel shooting.
The phrase Glorious Twelfth is sometimes also used to refer to the annual Orange Order celebrations of July 12, more commonly referred to as simply The Twelfth.
[edit] See also
- Hunting in the United Kingdom
- British Association for Shooting and Conservation
- Game (food)
- Red Grouse
[edit] External links
- British Association for Shooting and Conservation
- Official summary of legislation for shooting animals
[edit] References
Game Animals and Shooting in Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Game Birds: | Common Pheasant · Grey Partridge · Red-legged Partridge · Red Grouse · Ptarmigan · Black Grouse1 · Woodcock · Snipe · | |
| Quarry Species | Mallard · Teal · Woodpigeon · Golden Plover · Canada Goose · Greylag Goose · Pink-footed Goose · White-fronted Goose2 · Wigeon · Tufted Duck · Shoveler · Pintail · Gadwall · Pochard · Goldeneye · Moorhen · Coot · | |
| Deer: | Red Deer · Roe Deer · Fallow Deer · Sika Deer · Muntjac Deer · Chinese Water Deer | |
| Other Quarry: | Hare · Red Fox · Rabbit · | |
| See Also: | BASC · Hunting in the United Kingdom · Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust · Game Act 1831 · Countryside Alliance · Glorious Twelfth · Gamekeeper ·
1 Rarely shot due to declining numbers. 2 England and Wales only; protected Scotland. | |
