Wildfowling Guide
An introduction
Wildfowling is a demanding form of shooting carried out in the inter-tidal zone, creeks, gutters, saltings and marshes. It calls for patience, endurance, fieldcraft, safe judgement, species knowledge and a careful understanding of weather, tide and habitat.
Wildfowling asks the sportsman to learn the calls, habits and flight patterns of quarry species, work in low light and poor weather, and take satisfaction from uncertainty, anticipation and responsible success.
Location
The North Kent Marshes form a coastal fringe from Whitstable to Gravesend, including the Medway Estuary, Isle of Grain and Isle of Sheppey. The landscape includes pasture, mudflats, saltings and sea walls, with internationally important habitats for wintering and breeding birds.
- Thames Estuary
- Medway Estuary
- The Swale
- Inland and other marshes
Quarry identification
Main quarry are migratory geese and ducks. Their habits are governed by tide, wind, weather and moon. Geese often move at daybreak to feeding grounds and return to distant mudflat roosts at dusk; many duck feed by night and return to mudflats at dawn.
Members must be absolutely positive in identifying quarry species. The Association will not tolerate shooting at non-quarry species. The rule remains simple: when in doubt, do not shoot.
Dogs and retrieval
Responsible shooting includes taking shots only where birds can be retrieved. Members should mark fallen birds carefully, avoid areas where retrieval is impossible, and use a competent dog wherever needed and safe.
Range and ballistics
Members need to understand the effective range of their gun and ammunition before judging range or forward allowance. Effective shooting depends on penetration, pattern and aim together; one cannot make up for the absence of the others.