To jump straight to a particular question/section click on the question/section number

CONTENTS

The British Deer Society is a registered animal welfare charity whose 5,300 members are drawn from those interested in the management and conservation of deer and in scientific research. Our Constitution requires us to publish and disseminate factual information, expert reports and educational material on deer, their ecology and environment; and to formulate and publish standards of human behaviour in the treatment of deer. We have been intimately involved with organisations from both sides of the divide that exists between supporters of the hunts and their opponents. The Society has developed good working relations with the League Against Cruel Sports, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the International Fund for Animal Welfare. We have similar relationships with the Countryside Alliance and the Masters of Deer Hounds Association.

The Society is prevented by its Constitution from adopting, advocating or formulating any policy either for or against any lawful field sports. However, nothing in that clause prevents the Society from supplying any information, reports or statistics in our possession to the Government or to any political organisation or any other person.

Throughout the period in which we have been engaged in the hunting debate, we have striven to adopt and maintain an unbiased position, acting as facilitators to encourage sensible conversation between both sides in the debate. We have tried to ensure the same impartiality and balance has guided our approach to this submission to your Inquiry.

We have limited our comments to the hunting of deer with dogs. We are not qualified to address the issue of other quarry hunted by dog packs.

Finally, we have refrained from expressing a Society view on the ethics of hunting. That is for Parliament to decide. Our comments have been confined to those topics where we believe the welfare of deer and their continuing existence on Exmoor and the Quantock Hills might be in question.

Back to top

The Society is closely involved with all organisations having an interest in deer hunting.

Deer hunting is governed by laws laid down by Parliament and a code of conduct agreed by the Masters of Deer Hounds Association, the governing body for the sport.

The manner in which a hunt is conducted on the day is the responsibility of the hunt master. There are many descriptions of the events leading up to the hunt and the conduct on the day. Detailed descriptions are contained in reference A and D.

In addition to the packs of hounds controlled by the MDHA in the West of England, there are other packs, not recognised by the MDHA, who concentrate their activities on the hunting of roe deer. These packs normally contain a variety of different breeds of dog, operate both within and without the areas controlled by the MDHA. Their activities are not regulated by any governing body. They are frequently accused of a breach of good practice, non-selective hunting techniques, disregard for the welfare of the quarry, and hunting indiscriminately with scant regard for the law. The Society has some correspondence from the public on the activities of these hunts. We understand a more comprehensive report on their activities can be obtained from the MDHA.

References:

A. The Wild Red Deer of Exmoor - E R Lloyd, Exmoor Press, 1970.

B. Studies of English red deer populations subject to hunting to hounds - paper by Langbein and Putman, 1996.

C. Conservation and Management of deer on Exmoor and the Quantocks - report by Langbein and Putman for the Savage Inquiry, 1992.

D. The Hunt at Bay - report by Richard North for Wildlife Network 1999.

Back to top

Both sides in the deer hunting debate have either contributed to or sponsored research in this field. This Society has no expert knowledge in this area but we are aware of a number of publications which would be of interest to the Inquiry. The most recent reports are listed below. The report by the Centre for Rural Studies is the most comprehensive review of the issues involved.

References:

1. Economic and Social Aspects of Deer Hunting on Exmoor and the Quantocks - report to the National Trust by the Centre for Rural Studies, RAC Cirencester, Apr 93.
2. Countryside Sports; their Economic, Social and Conservation Significance - report for the Standing Conference on Countryside Sports, 1997.
3. Countryside Sports and the UK Biodiversity Plan - report for the Standing Conference on Countryside Sports, 1999.
4. The Conservation & Management of Red Deer in the West Country - The Savage Report for the National Trust, 1993.

The references for Q2 deal with this issue.

We have no comment to make on the likely impact of greater participation in drag hunting or bloodhound hunting on the rural economy.

If hunting with dogs is banned, deer numbers will still need to be controlled. That control would have to be conducted using firearms. There could be some income generated by visiting stalkers for landowners and the local economy, if the management of the deer was organised and controlled by Deer Management Groups (DMGs). The DMG members would be local farmers and landowners, who would determine local deer management and culling policy.

Reference:

A. Towards Sustainable Management of Deer in Exmoor and the Quantock Hills - report for the Exmoor and Quantock Deer Research Project by J Langbein, 1998.

Back to top

There is a great deal of evidence available from Government organisations (like English Nature, the Forestry Commission, MAFF, ADAS, Deer Commission for Scotland) and wildlife organisations, both national and regional about the impact of deer on the environment.

The total population of deer in Great Britain is difficult to determine, but based on the best evidence we have, we estimate it to be in the order of 1.25M. It would be reasonable to assume that at least half of that population is female, with most of breeding age. The breeding success of the different species of deer vary, but we can say with some confidence that on average, 30 percent of the annual cohort survive to adulthood. That recruitment is not balanced by losses due to natural mortality or accidents. Without a proper control programme, the population of deer would be increasing on a geometric progression. The impact of deer on farm crops, woodland planting and management schemes, natural regeneration and biodiversity is already of concern to farmers, foresters and environmentalists. Deer cause damage by browsing, grazing and trampling crops. There are well-documented reports dealing with the degree of damage and the implications for foresters, farmers and environmentalists.

A. Quantock Landholders Deer Management Questionnaire - report for QDM&CG by J Langbein, 1998.

B. Deer Management on National Nature Reserves - report for English Nature by Putman, 1996.

C. ADAS report on Brompton Farm (Mr P Buckingham), May 1989.

4. ADAS report on Slowly Farm (Mr C Henson), 1994.

1. The Ranging Behaviour, Habitat-use and Impact of Deer in Oak Woodlands and Heather Moors of Exmoor and the Quantock Hills - report for various sponsors by Langbein, 1997.

The three remaining deer hunts in the West of England do play a part in helping to control deer numbers, although the numbers they cull are a small part of the overall annual cull in the Tiverton/Exmoor/Quantock area, averaging 130 kills a year. Those 130 deer are killed on hunt days. The figure takes no account of injured or diseased deer which the hunts have been called upon to dispatch on humanitarian grounds. There is no mechanism to record the total number of deer culled by legitimate shooting in the same catchment area but a number of studies have concluded the figure is in the order of 1000 deer a year. Again, that figure does not include injured or diseased deer. It also takes no account of the deer lost to poachers, for which (understandably) there are no statistics.

Hunting disturbs and disrupts the herd singled out for attention. This disruption is seen by many landowners as an advantage, preventing the congregation of the herd onto one property. Experience elsewhere in Britain indicates a similar result can be achieved by shooting.

Reference:

A. Conservation and Management of deer on Exmoor and the Quantocks - report for the Savage Inquiry by Langbein and Putman, 1992

The New Forest Buckhounds decided to disband the hunt in July 1997. Reports from the New Forest indicate that the additional control measures introduced by the Forestry Commission to take account of the demise of the hunt have proved to be effective.

With the exception of the deer packs in the Exmoor area, control of deer numbers throughout Britain is achieved by stalkers, professional and recreational, using firearms. They may operate as individuals or as members of a Deer Management Group. The safety record of stalkers is good. We are not aware of any accidents involving stalkers and firearms in the countryside.

Recent deer census work conducted by the Society indicates that deer are continuing to spread throughout Great Britain and numbers are increasing. Work conducted by Langbein and Putman in the New Forest indicates that a cull of approximately 20% across the species would be adequate to maintain deer numbers at a constant. That equates to an annual cull of 200K to 250K. If we assume a cull of 200K, shooting accounts for 99.935% of the deer culled each year. The hunts account for 0.065%.

The case for the retention of the hunts is covered in a comprehensive manner in Ref B. It contains a list of useful contacts and comments from supporters of the hunt about the impact on the countryside of a ban on hunting.

Reference:

A: Conservation & Management of deer on Exmoor and the Quantocks - report for the Savage Inquiry by Langbein and Putman, 1992.

B. Briefing Paper on Hunting for the National Trust - submission from the hunts and Countryside Alliance, 1997.

Putman and Langbein suggest a range of measures which might be considered. Neither reference addresses hunting, but both consider current deer management techniques and the issues arising.

Reference:

1. Deer Management on National Nature Reserves - Report for English Nature by Putman, 1996.
2. Guidelines for Management of Deer in and around Agricultural, Urban Fringe, Woodland and Conservation Habitats - report for MAFF, contract CSA 2908, by Putman, 1995.

c. Deer and their Management in the New Forest - consultation report for Forest Enterprise by Langbein and Putman, 1999,

Back to top

The hunts are very much a part of the fabric of the country and the local people. Their importance to the social structure of the local community should not be underestimated.

The contribution hunts make to the life of the community is laid out very clearly in Reference A.

Reference:

A. Economic and Social Aspects of Deer Hunting on Exmoor and the Quantocks - report for the National Trust by the Centre for Rural Studies, RAC Cirencester.

Back to top

The hunts have played a major role in maintaining a significant population of red deer in the Exmoor area. Many of the local landowners and farmers are hunt members or hunt supporters. That support allows the hunts to range wide and exercise tight control over the deer and land use within their sphere of influence. They are able to actively discourage activities which they see as detrimental to the wellbeing of the hunt and the deer.

A ban on hunting deer with dogs would lead to the disbandment of the hunts.

The loss of the hunts could create a vacuum which would be very difficult to fill. The hunts are able to operate over the moors because they have the active support of most of the landowners over whose land they ride. It would be unwise to assume that landowners and farmers who have lost the right to hunt would, without question, welcome any system imposed on them by the state. It is by no means certain that the consensus achieved by the hunts would survive their demise. We believe most strongly that the management of the red deer would suffer if no agreement were reached with farmers and landowners about the way forward. An imposed solution will further alienate those whose co-operation is essential if any new management plan is to succeed. The threat by some landowners to cull all the deer if hunting is banned should not be underestimated, as the shooting of 100 deer on the Quantocks by two farmers in 1998 as a protest at the National Trust ban clearly illustrates (Ref A).

Reference:

A. The Daily Telegraph, The Times et al., 10 February 1998

Back to top

The last two years has seen the first serious attempts made by scientists to quantify the stress caused to deer by hunting. The results and conclusions of both the Bateson Report and the Joint Universities Study have been published and discussed at length, in camera and in public. The scientific results from both studies are similar, but the authors have drawn quite different conclusions from their findings.

The Society is still considering the results of the two studies. We have yet to form an opinion.

References:

1. The behavioural and Physiological Effects of Culling Red Deer – report by Professor Bateson for the National Trust
2. The physiological response of red deer to prolonged exercise undertaken during hunting - Joint Universities report for the Countryside Alliance and the Devon and Somerset Staghounds.
3. The Bateson Report: Use or Abuse of Science? – Dr Douglas Wise.
4. Welfare Aspects of Killing or Capturing Wild Vertebrates in Britain – N Fox and H Macdonald.
5. British Wildlife Management: Wildlife Welfare – numerous submissions by the Patrick Foundation.

This Society is of the opinion that the only effective alternative at present to hunting with dogs is shooting, the control method used throughout the rest of the UK It has been suggested that contraception might be employed to control numbers. We have considered this option. We conclude that the science is generally sound but there are insurmountable problems with the application of the science to deer in the wild. At present the most effective means of administering the drug is by darting. Practicality, manpower, availability of equipment, availability of the drug and costs will in our view rule out this option. Work is currently under way to develop alternative methods to deliver the contraceptive drug.

If hunting were banned, it would be essential to include an exclusion clause to allow the use of dogs to follow up injured or diseased deer. Most stalkers who are called on to assist the police or animal welfare organisations with locating and dispatching deer use a dog to track and locate the injured animal, particularly in heavily wooded areas.

The motor car is unfortunately a major cause of injury and death to deer. Between 30,000 and 50,000 deer are killed each year on our roads. The West Country hunts provide a casualty service in such cases, dispatching deer and disposing of the cacasses. It would be essential for an alternative system to be in place, should hunting be banned.

References:

A: Review of the Potential of Immunocontraceptives for Wildlife Management - report for MAFF by P Smith et al, 1996

B: Chemical and Immunological Methods in the Control of Reproduction in Deer and other Wildlife - report for the RSPCA by Prof. Putman, 1997.

C. Population Ecology, Management and Welfare of Deer - proceedings of a symposium at Manchester Metropolitan University, April 1997.

D. Deer Management on National Nature Reserves - report for English Nature by Putman, 1996.

E. The Prevention of Wildlife Casualties on Roads through the use of Deterrents - Highways Agency report SW335/v2/08-97 dated Aug 1997.

Back to top

We have no comments to make on the form of the ban.

If hunting is banned, it is essential that the void left by the disbanding of the hunts be filled by an organisation that can introduce effective management controls which have the support of the landowners. There is real concern on Exmoor and the Quantocks that a ban on hunting will result in the decimation of the deer herds. In the absence of any form of controlling body with responsibility for co-ordinating the management of the red deer, deer numbers will decline as landowners follow their own agenda.

We suggest it might prove difficult for the ban to be applied by local authorities or the Exmoor Nation Park Authority. We consider this might be an appropriate time to consider the formation of a Deer Commission for England. The Deer Initiative could be tasked with implementing the policy whilst the formation of a Deer Commission for England is under consideration.

No BDS comment

Back to top

Date uploaded to site 10 March 2000