While many were thrilled to see the white Christmas they dreamed of, the following weeks were not greeted with the same festive cheer. Thanks to frozen pipes, huge heating bills and roads better suited to dog-power than horsepower, the dream rapidly became more of a nightmare. However, while almost everyone has suffered in some way, gamekeepers are among the hardest hit – having to cancel numerous shoots, and facing a constant battle to keep their birds and beasts alive.

As pheasants generally rely on grain put down by keepers, they have been comparatively easy to keep fed, and many other species, especially songbirds, have been kept alive by this precious food source. Yet many keepers have had to carry bags of grain through snow too deep for vehicles to get through or, in the case of Alex Hogg in the Borders, occasionally run the gauntlet of taking a quad bike over ice too thin to stand on – ‘As long as you keep at 30mph, you’re safe!’ he explains. However, many shoots have been cancelled both due to access problems, and another, more unusual difficulty – ‘because it’s very hard for dogs to find the fallen birds, which disappear without trace under the deep powdery snow.’ Wild birds have been harder to preserve, however, and the Scottish Government had to place a two week ban on shooting waders and wildfowl – the first time for 13 years – as these species’ feeding grounds went from soggy to solid as the ice took hold.

Even deer, hardy as they are, are starting to suffer.

Shoots cancelled

Ardtornish Estate, in Morvern, had to cancel one of their annual woodcock shooting weeks but, rather than feeling bitter about the ban, keeper Simon Boult was happy to voluntarily extend the ceasefire for longer than legally required. ‘After the ban was lifted we decided to cancel in case the birds were in poor condition or thin on the ground. And we did not shoot for the couple of weeks before the ban, due to the hard weather, as we felt it was not fair on the woodcock,’ he explained. Boult’s concern for the welfare of the woodcock was mirrored elsewhere in the country – although cancelled days might cause financial problems for estate owners, it is vital to sustain a healthy population.

‘The Scottish Government had to place a two week ban on shooting waders and wildfowl.’

While this task takes up a large proportion of keepers’ time in normal conditions, the snow has made it virtually impossible in some areas, as grouse keeper Paul Percival explained. Percival’s 6,000 acres where any sign of heather showed through. As a result he was forced to try other ways to expose the heather. ‘We tried dragging a heavy iron gate behind the tractor, to break through the crust,’ he explains, ‘but the snow was too deep to drive through, so we had to resort to digging strips in the snow by hand. We also tried putting out oats, as some people think that grouse will eat them in the hardest of weather, but the fact that we found dead birds nearby showed that grouse would rather die.’ ‘These problems caused the grouse to migrate to 20 or even 30 miles away to where the snow was less deep,’ he explained, and apparently they have even been seen right down on the East Lothian coast.

But, while the birds’ natural instincts might have saved them from starvation, Percival also pointed out it took them away from the protection of the keepers, ‘into areas where predators are not controlled’. And, to make things all the more galling, while he had ‘left a good stock to improve on next year... that plan may have gone out the window as we expect a large percentage of the grouse won’t make it back when the snow finally goes.’ Elsewhere grouse have also been suffering but, in the Highlands, they’ve struck up an unlikely alliance – with deer.

Deer and grouse

For although deer are generally deemed bad for grouse – as they eat a great deal of heather and pass on ticks to the birds – in deep snow they can be useful. ‘Grouse and blackgame follow the deer, as the animals’ tracks help to uncover the heather’, George MacDonald, at Rannoch Station, explained. Yet even the deer, which are amongst the most hardy of hill-dwelling mammals, are starting to suffer, and MacDonald believes that part of the problem are hillwalkers, who are unaware of the animals’ plight. ‘Disturbance by walkers forces the animals to keep moving,’ he reflects, ‘and considering the snow is up to the animals’ bellies, it doesn’t take long for them to get hungry, exhausted and stressed.’

The weather proved an endurance test for all wild animals.

Mike Holliday, at Glen Ample in Perthshire, observes that, even without walkers, many animals are suffering. ‘Old and weak animals can usually survive ’til at least March, he observes, ‘but this year it’s starting much sooner, and we’re already seeing groups of calves that have been abandoned by their mothers on the hill.’ Thankfully, stalkers can help to minimise the suffering of such animals, but the snow has prevented access to some areas and it’s too deep or too icy for using either ponies or Argocats, so many stalkers are having to resort to dragging out culled deer by hand. And the fear is that, while the worst of the weather might be over, the snow is likely to hang around for some time. ‘A good blanket of snow takes some shifting,’ Holliday reflects. It is clear that whatever the weather for the rest of the winter, thanks to the efforts of keepers and stalkers many creatures will either survive the winter or at least be spared a lingering death. And, while most of their efforts are directed at the creatures from which they earn a living, it is not just game species that benefit from their hard work.

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