Ban shooting hares before they disappear

As a boy growing up in rural Scotland in the 1950s they were a very common sight encountered on any walk in the fields around the town I lived in.

I well remember the first time I saw a pair of males boxing with each other for territory trading blows turn for turn until the loser loped away.

Not a sight we are likely to see now sadly.

However perhaps the most heinous aspect is the fact that well-heeled toffs still hunt these animals with dog and gun in what they call "sport."

In my part of Scotland hunting hares in this way was considered a suitable way of passing New Year's Day and anybody who has heard the cry of pain, just like a human baby, of a wounded hare will be haunted by it forever - I certainly am.

Clearly winning a sane policy on farming which protects habitats is likely to be long and hard, although farmers are open to persuasion via public subsidies.

But it would surely be a simple matter to recognise the endangered position of the hare and ban its shooting for entertainment by a few sick individuals as first step to preserving this iconic creature.

Ken Ferguson

Fife