Meet the ‘unpaid staff' holding back the floods
Shooting Times & Country|July 14, 2021
Richard Negus marvels at the ecological handiwork of the secretive beavers at a successful reintroduction project in the heart of Essex
Richard Negus marvels
Meet the ‘unpaid staff' holding back the floods

My son has a ‘museum of curiosities’ in his bedroom. His exhibits are eclectic and varied. Among others, he boasts a Cretaceous sea cucumber found in a local sugar beet field, a red stag head from a beast shot in Westmorland, a piece of Cambrian seabed lugged down a Welsh mountain and a stuffed weasel.

He has added a piece of cricket bat willow to the collection. It’s about 2ft in length and the bark has been entirely stripped, leaving lines of chisel-like gouges in the pith. The ends are cut at neat 45-degree angles, seemingly snicked by a sharp and skilfully swung billhook.

A marked smell emanates from the branch. At first sniff, there is a hint of badger-like muskiness. After a deeper draught, medicinal notes take over, reminding me of the wart cream I used to smear on the muzzles of yearlings. I found this stick deep within a fecund wet woodland on a fine old estate in Essex. It was one of many hundreds of sticks and logs that made up a beaver’s dam.

Archie Ruggles-Brise is the 11th generation of his family to own and manage the Spains Hall Estate near Finchingfield. For a man who owns an estate and has this many syllables to his name, Archie is both remarkably straight-talking and practical. He understands farming and is both qualified and experienced in all matters riparian — he was the head of the Tyne Rivers Trust.

Gnawing teeth

This story is from the July 14, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the July 14, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRYView All
United we stand
Shooting Times & Country

United we stand

Following United Utilities' decision to end grouse shooting on its land, Lindsay Waddell asks what will happen if we ignore our vital moors

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Serious matters
Shooting Times & Country

Serious matters

An old gamebook prompts a contemplation on punt-gunning

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023
They're not always as easy as they seem
Shooting Times & Country

They're not always as easy as they seem

While coneys of the furry variety don't pose a problem for Blue Zulu, he's left frustrated once again by bolting bunnies of the clay sort

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Debutant gundogs
Shooting Times & Country

Debutant gundogs

There's lots to think about when it comes to making the decision about when to introduce your dog to shooting

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
When the going gets rough
Shooting Times & Country

When the going gets rough

Al Gabriel returns to the West London Shooting School to brush up on his rough shooting technique

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition
Shooting Times & Country

The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition

In this excerpt from the 60th anniversary edition of the BDS's Field Guide To British Deer, Charles Smith-Jones considers the noise they make

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
A step too far?
Shooting Times & Country

A step too far?

Simon Garnham wonders whether a new dog, a new gun and two different fields in need of protection might have been asking too much for one afternoon's work

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Two bucks before breakfast
Shooting Times & Country

Two bucks before breakfast

A journey from old South London to rural Hertfordshire to stalk muntjac suggests that the two aren't as far detached as they might seem

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Stalking Diary
Shooting Times & Country

Stalking Diary

Stalkers can be a sentimental bunch, and they often carry a huge attachment to their hill

time-read
2 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Gamekeeper
Shooting Times & Country

Gamekeeper

Alan Edwards believes unique, private experiences can help keepers become more competent and passionate custodians of the countryside

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023