Manor Farm shoot Dorset

A herd of fallow deer charged back through the line, led by one of the hares that thrive here. Amid this wildlife maelstrom, two pheasants found their way on to the game cart

- Gabriel Stone

Guns enjoy a day of camaraderie and challenging wild sport on a shoot where conservation is the cornerstone

WHICH sight would bring more joy to your heart: a squadron of high pheasant barrelling overhead or a flurry of goldfinch shimmering along a field margin? What about the choice between watching a covey of driven red partridge break out of the maize right towards you or a covey of greys whirring away into the distance? Each choice offers a different, very valid buzz. It’s also certainly possible to experience an element of both on the same shoot day, but at some point the landowner has to pick a priority. That’s not to say preferences and situations cannot change. Perhaps it’s a generational shift, maybe it’s recognition that your current model is no longer sustainable, others might be inspired by a neighbour’s results, but a steady trickle of shoots are re-evaluating their focus towards conservation over big bags. For anyone considering a step in this direction, there’s no better person to talk to than Mike Swan, who spent more than 30 years building a conservation-led shoot at Manor Farm on the chalk country in east Dorset.

Entirely separate to his long-term day job as senior adviser to the GWCT, this shoot has nevertheless provided Swan with

a great test bed for new ideas and an ideal place to demonstrate to curious visitors what is (and isn’t) possible when you really do put the conservation agenda first.