Country diary: farmed pheasants are little more than free-range livestock

Sandy, Bedfordshire: The birds on southern shooting estates are poles apart from their wild cousinsOut of breath and panting heavily, I breasted the summit of the Lion's Haunch, paused, then turned, slowly. A stiff pull up a frozen path through low gorse had brought me to the lesser peak of Arthur's Seat, the extinct volcano that looms above Edinburgh. I stopped to feast on the view, my gaze sweeping along the Firth of Forth, out to the reddish-orange burn of sunrise over the Pentland hills and back to the twinkly lights of the city.My descent had barely begun when I shocked a pheasant out of its bed of thorns. It exploded grouse-like from gorse, tail feathers quivering, and my first startled thought was: this is a wild bird. Continue reading...