It's the responsibility of every hunter to ensure that their conduct is safe, ethical, informed and complicit with local laws; while of course any content posted to AGF should reflect this (whether posted in the hunting section or elsewhere on the forum).
Thankfully the vast majority of our members rightfully don't need reminding of this; however for those who do, details of what we expect from content posted in the hunting section are summarised below.
Appropriate Quarry Species & Justification for their Control:
Under suitable conditions legal limit / sub-12ft.lb air rifles are appropriate for "vermin and ground game" no larger than rabbit, and pest bird species no larger than crow. current Home Office guidelines
Vermin and Ground Game
As a sub-set taken from the current BASC list of "Mammalian pest species", 12ftlb airguns are suitable for the control of the following "vermin and ground game" in England, Wales and Northern Ireland:
- Brown rat
- Grey squirrel
- Rabbit
- Mouse (all except common / hazel dormouse)
- Mink
- Stoat
- Weasel (not Northern Ireland)
All of these can legally be shot all year round without having to give "good reason"; however like anything else if you don't have a good reason to kill it; leave it alone!
Pest Bird Species
The species of birds considered to be pests, along with the circumstances under which they can legally be controlled are published in a range of general licenses which can be found for each part of the UK in the following links:
- England (Natural England / DEFRA)
- Wales (Natural Resources Wales)
- Scotland (Scottish Natural Heritage)
- Northern Ireland (DAERA)
Remember that these stipulations can and do change. Guidance and the latest news relating to general licenses throughout the country can be found on the BASC website.
It is the responsibility of members to ensure that their choice of quarry and justification for shooting it are permissible under current law(s) and general license(s); and of course we want to see nothing posted to the forum that falls / appears to fall outside of these legal requirements.
Range:
We consider the maximum effective hunting range for a legal limit / sub-12ft.lb rifle under optimum conditions to be no more than 40 yards. As range increases so does group size, while the effects of trajectory and wind grow exponentially - all of which greatly increasing the possibility of missing or - far worse - wounding your quarry.
The maximum range of the equipment is determined by simple physics; not how good a shot the shooter might consider themselves to be. Shots taken at excessive range are irresponsible, unethical and not to be promoted or discussed on AGF.
Foxes and Airguns:
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of foxes with airguns, including FAC-rated airguns, are prohibited.
This measure is in place to ensure ethical practices, maintain public confidence, and align with responsible wildlife management standards.
Equipment:
Air Pistols
We do not consider air pistols to be an appropriate tool for ‘hunting’ including those with fitted stocks and optics.
The only legitimate pest control application for an air pistol, is for dispatching trapped quarry at ‘point blank’ range.
Hunting with air pistols is not to be promoted or discussed on AGF.
Please remember, the 6fpe (legal muzzle energy limit), still applies to air pistols whether they have a stock fitted or not.
FAC AIR:
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of any live quarry at distances exceeding 70 yards, with FAC rated airguns, are prohibited.
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of foxes with FAC-rated airguns, are prohibited.
This measure is in place to ensure ethical practices, maintain public confidence, and align with responsible wildlife management standards.
General Conduct:
It is the hunter's responsibility to take every precaution possible to ensure the safe, clean and humane dispatch of their quarry. Those who are unable or unwilling to do so should not be hunting and certainly not posting evidence of their shortcomings for public consumption - nobody wants to see such material and it can only damage our already fragile public image.
While we welcome our international members, please remember that this is a predominantly British forum and that content posted to the hunting forum should reflect British laws, ethics and values.
Consequences:
Any content that contravenes the above rules or is otherwise deemed to be inappropriate will be deleted. We encourage members to report anything they find unacceptable as such posts are potentially damaging to us all.
Anyone responsible for posting content that does not conform to the rules will get one warning and any subsequent infractions of a similar nature will earn their author a permanent ban from the forum.
Thanks for reading and happy hunting
Thankfully the vast majority of our members rightfully don't need reminding of this; however for those who do, details of what we expect from content posted in the hunting section are summarised below.
Appropriate Quarry Species & Justification for their Control:
Under suitable conditions legal limit / sub-12ft.lb air rifles are appropriate for "vermin and ground game" no larger than rabbit, and pest bird species no larger than crow. current Home Office guidelines
Vermin and Ground Game
As a sub-set taken from the current BASC list of "Mammalian pest species", 12ftlb airguns are suitable for the control of the following "vermin and ground game" in England, Wales and Northern Ireland:
- Brown rat
- Grey squirrel
- Rabbit
- Mouse (all except common / hazel dormouse)
- Mink
- Stoat
- Weasel (not Northern Ireland)
All of these can legally be shot all year round without having to give "good reason"; however like anything else if you don't have a good reason to kill it; leave it alone!
Pest Bird Species
The species of birds considered to be pests, along with the circumstances under which they can legally be controlled are published in a range of general licenses which can be found for each part of the UK in the following links:
- England (Natural England / DEFRA)
- Wales (Natural Resources Wales)
- Scotland (Scottish Natural Heritage)
- Northern Ireland (DAERA)
Remember that these stipulations can and do change. Guidance and the latest news relating to general licenses throughout the country can be found on the BASC website.
It is the responsibility of members to ensure that their choice of quarry and justification for shooting it are permissible under current law(s) and general license(s); and of course we want to see nothing posted to the forum that falls / appears to fall outside of these legal requirements.
Range:
We consider the maximum effective hunting range for a legal limit / sub-12ft.lb rifle under optimum conditions to be no more than 40 yards. As range increases so does group size, while the effects of trajectory and wind grow exponentially - all of which greatly increasing the possibility of missing or - far worse - wounding your quarry.
The maximum range of the equipment is determined by simple physics; not how good a shot the shooter might consider themselves to be. Shots taken at excessive range are irresponsible, unethical and not to be promoted or discussed on AGF.
Foxes and Airguns:
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of foxes with airguns, including FAC-rated airguns, are prohibited.
This measure is in place to ensure ethical practices, maintain public confidence, and align with responsible wildlife management standards.
Equipment:
Air Pistols
We do not consider air pistols to be an appropriate tool for ‘hunting’ including those with fitted stocks and optics.
The only legitimate pest control application for an air pistol, is for dispatching trapped quarry at ‘point blank’ range.
Hunting with air pistols is not to be promoted or discussed on AGF.
Please remember, the 6fpe (legal muzzle energy limit), still applies to air pistols whether they have a stock fitted or not.
FAC AIR:
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of any live quarry at distances exceeding 70 yards, with FAC rated airguns, are prohibited.
Discussions or posts about the dispatch of foxes with FAC-rated airguns, are prohibited.
This measure is in place to ensure ethical practices, maintain public confidence, and align with responsible wildlife management standards.
General Conduct:
It is the hunter's responsibility to take every precaution possible to ensure the safe, clean and humane dispatch of their quarry. Those who are unable or unwilling to do so should not be hunting and certainly not posting evidence of their shortcomings for public consumption - nobody wants to see such material and it can only damage our already fragile public image.
While we welcome our international members, please remember that this is a predominantly British forum and that content posted to the hunting forum should reflect British laws, ethics and values.
Consequences:
Any content that contravenes the above rules or is otherwise deemed to be inappropriate will be deleted. We encourage members to report anything they find unacceptable as such posts are potentially damaging to us all.
Anyone responsible for posting content that does not conform to the rules will get one warning and any subsequent infractions of a similar nature will earn their author a permanent ban from the forum.
Thanks for reading and happy hunting
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