Glorious Twelfth opens British game season

Probably the most important date in the shooting man’s diary is 12 August. The date – known as the Glorious Twelfth in sporting circles – marks the beginning of the game season in Britain.

Across the country, sporting estates buzz with excitement as shooters, keepers, beaters and dogs prepare for the big day.

With luck, the moors and uplands will be looking their best, with heather flowering in its full purple glory and skylarks in full song under a blue, high summer sky.

The quarry is the red grouse, arguably the most famous and most noble of all of the UK’s gamebirds.

The importance of the day can hardly be overemphasised, says Simon Clarke, a spokesman for BASC – the UK’s leading shooting organisation. ‘It is the most significant day in the sporting calendar in the UK,’ he suggests.

‘The date signifies the start of the game season, which begins with wild grouse shooting on Britain’s unique moorlands. Grouse moors have to be managed to encourage the wild grouse population as they cannot be bred in captivity. They are a truly wild game bird that can fly at up to 70mph challenging even the most experienced shots.’

Anybody who has seen a shoot on a grouse moor will vouch for that. The birds fly fast and low and are coloured in a way that merges with the heather and bracken. For the inexperienced shot there is just about enough time to realise a bird is upon you before it has flashed past.

‘It’s the jewel in the sporting crown,’ Clarke adds. ‘People fly in from all over the world to experience the Glorious Twelfth.’

One reason for this excitement is that the red grouse is unique to the uplands of the UK – another is that a day’s shooting is likely to be an unforgettable experience, with the birds speeding towards the guns who are generally in pre-arranged positions.

The best results are likely to be enjoyed on or around the Glorious Twelfth, adds Clarke: ‘As the season moves on the birds become a little more difficult to shoot, generally as numbers are fewer. It’s probably fair to say you get a better bag in the opening days of the season.’

Grouse is also highly prized for its meat. Those first birds shot on 12 August are very much in demand in restaurants across the country.

The attractiveness of the birds to shooting enthusiasts and chefs alike came close to providing its downfall – as the species was pursued with too much enthusiasm in the years around 1900. In current times, however, it’s generally agreed that shooting has helped preserve the species and its habitat.

As a ground-nesting bird, red grouse are under threat from predators such as foxes and stoats so active management of a grouse moor stacks the odds in their favour in a way nature on its own could not manage. The shooting lobby is also pleased to note the importance of grouse shooting to local economies in places where jobs are generally scarce.

While the red grouse season begins proceedings for enthusiasts of countryside sports, other game birds have different seasons in the UK, with species such as partridge available from 1 September and pheasant and woodcock from 1 October.

Those hoping to shoot grouse, however, should not delay. The season is short – it ends on 10 December.