Beating Up Birds Trivia Quiz

Answer: Battue

Hunting game birds as a sport in the UK became popular in the 16th century with falconry, and even moreso with the development of flintlock and matchlock rifles. Early on, birds were often shot on the ground or in the water, a practice which is largely frowned upon now, and often considered to be 'unsporting'. Shooting game birds on the wing became popular in the 17th century, using dogs to flush them out.

With the story of the 2nd Earl of Malmesbury, he saw an established practice of driven game shooting, where people beat the bush to drive out the game towards the hunters. Derived from the French word 'battre', meaning 'to beat', the hunting practice of 'battue' was brought the practice back to the UK with him.

Point to note - according to the Merriam-Webster (online) Dictionary, the first known use of the word 'battue' was in 1816, so who can say if the story was true. All that to say, 'battue' is defined as "the beating of woods and bushes to flush game" and "a hunt in which this procedure is used".

Answer: Breech-loading

Breech-loading allowed for much faster loading, firing, and reloading, etc. than the flintlock, which required ignition of gunpowder to force ball or shot out of the rifle. Breech-loading was a development that accompanied cartridges and firing pins, combining what was once separate, and streamlining the whole process of firing a gun.

Barrel rifling was invented in the 15th century, while flintlocks were developed in the 17th century. Semi-automatics would not be seen until the late 19th century.

Answer: Quail

Game Act 1931:

2. What shall be deemed Game.
"The word "game" shall for all the purposes of this Act be deemed to include hares, pheasants, partridges, grouse, heath or moor game, black game.""

Heath or moor game are also known as 'red grouse', while black game are also known as 'black grouse'.

The Act also outlined the length of hunting season for each type of game bird.

Another type of game bird was originally included in the Act (although since deleted in an amendment) was the great bustard. Even with a limited hunting season defined by the Game Act, the bird was hunted to extinction (in the UK) in the 1830s. In recent years, though, an effort has been made to reintroduce the species to the UK, but they are definitely off the list of approved game birds.

Answer: Sundays and Christmas Day

Game Act 1931:

3. Days and Seasons during which Game shall not be killed. Penalty for laying poison to kill game.
"If any person whatsoever shall kill or take any game, or use any dog, gun, net, or other engine or instrument for the purpose of killing or taking any game, on a Sunday or Christmas Day, such person shall, on conviction thereof before two justices of the peace, forfeit and pay for every such offence such sum of money, not exceeding [level 1 on the standard scale], as to the said justices shall seem meet."

Answer: Gamekeeper

Gamekeepers are responsible for managing the game population of a given area, and this is not limited to game birds. Within their role, they must ensure sufficient populations of game for hunting (shooting or stalking) or fish for angling, and they also manage the areas of woodland, moorland, waterway or farmland that they oversee to keep it good for game animals and other wildlife.

In the early 20th century there were upwards of 25,000 full-time gamekeepers in the UK. Over 100 years later, and there are only approximately 3,000 so employed.

Answer: Tweeds in earth tones and green

The full uniform is a shirt with a collar (tie optional), tweed waistcoat, jacket, and matching "plus-fours". Plus-fours are short trousers, worn in case of treading through a bog, thus requiring only a change of socks. And speaking of socks, they are the only part of the ensemble that can be a bright colour, if desired.

Answer: Rifle

Beaters have three main tools that they use in their task of flushing game birds towards the Guns (shooters). Some beaters will simply use a stick to beat the bushes and heather, others will use flags to try to increase the height of the birds by waving them as the birds fly overhead. Beater's dogs should be well-trained to the task, good at staying close to the line and helping to flush the game, but NOT to attempt to retrieve the birds when they are shot.

Rifles and/or shotguns, are, of course, limited to the Guns, for safety first and foremost. The Guns may only shoot if a bird flies directly above their peg, so that the other people around are never in the line of fire. And, the Guns are typically the ones that are paying for the privilege of shooting the game that is being beaten towards them. No one else should be shooting (or claiming) any of the birds.

Answer: Humanely dispatching wounded birds

The prime objective of shooting live game is to provide an instant death, and the Guns train and practise their marksmanship for just such an outcome. However, when game do fall injured, it is the role of the pickers-up to ensure a quick death with as little pain as possible for the bird. To that end, a tool called a 'priest' (an instrument which acquired its name as it "administers the last rites") should always be ready for use in the field.

As the practice of hunting and shooting continues to be a controversial practice in the UK, it is essential that regulated practices are in place to ensure the animals do not suffer needlessly (within the context of the fact that they are being hunted).

Answer: Two thirds

Reference: https://www.face.eu/sites/default/files/uk.en_.2010.pdf -
Paragraph on Pg. 9 of 19 "Shooting and Stalking".

Hunting in general, including driven game shooting, has received much criticism over the years. The League Against Cruel Sports was founded in 1924 to fight against the practice. On their website they state, "Up to 146,000 pheasants, 5,300 red grouse and 38,300 red-legged partridges are shot every day in the UK, during their respective hunting seasons."

The checks and balances that have been brought about by such groups has made the industry publish and follow the "Code of Good Shooting Practice" and the "Guide to Good Game Handling". And through the Gamekeepers, much effort is made in maintaining habitats and populations.

The shooting industry creates £1.6 billion. £250 million is spent on conservation as a result of shooting.

Answer: George V

Reportedly, the group of shooters (along with the king) took down 3,937 pheasants over the six-day shoot, but the king's portion was not enough to win the contest with his friend.