Hunting shooting terms and definitions . Slang & other hunting terms used in Scotland and UK. 

Brace: Describes a pair of birds - grouse, pheasant and partridge in particular are counted this way.

Butt:  Usually for grouse shooting. A waist high stone, peat and heather 'hide' in which the standing shooter is placed for driven grouse. A stick may be stuck into the top of the low wall on the right and left hand side to indicate the limits of the safe shooting arc.

Calf : The young of Red &  Sika deer. See also fawn.

Deer Forest: Just to keep you really confused, this term does not describe a large wood! Now used to describe an area where Red Deer are to be found on a particular mountain or group of mountains or hills. There are usually no trees to be seen. (the term is derived from a time when all our hills were covered in trees).

Doe: An adult female Roe deer or Fallow deer

Fawn: The young of Roe and Fallow deer. See also calf.

Garron:  Hill pony used for carrying stags or hinds off the hill.

Ghillie or Gillie: The word is derived from the Gaelic word gille meaning boy or servant. More often used for fishing nowadays but is also used to describe the guide or stalker who accompanies the person who is going to shoot a deer.

Gralloch: The stomach, intestines, liver and spleen of a deer - which is removed after the shot whilst on the hill, prior to dragging or carrying the beast off the hill.

Gun: This may not just refer to the actual shotgun or weapon,  but is also used to refer to the person who is actually shooting or hunting.

High Seat: Raised seat accessed by a ladder for sitting in to shoot woodland deer. For some reason, some inexperienced UK stalkers call this a high chair much to my amusement because only babies use a high chair when eating with their family.

Hill : Only climbers and the anorak walkers call them mountains! However steep or however high - all deer stalkers call them hills.

Hind: The adult female Red deer.

Hunting : In the UK, this term is normally used to describe the pursuit of a fox , deer or other animals with the hunters either riding on horseback with hounds or on foot with hounds or by falconers when flying their birds on quarry. Most other countries use this term to describe what we would call game shooting or stalking. Do not confuse these terms! The UK and the Scottish Governments have been trying to ban hunting with dogs for some time now. This does not mean that our traditional sport of using shotguns or rifles have been banned!!

Keeper: The person who manages the game on an estate and is responsible for rearing of birds, vermin control and a huge range of other related jobs as well as being charge of running the shooting and stalking days.

Lek: Where birds - black grouse in particular, make courtship displays. The peak of this activity for Black grouse is during April. 

Rifle : Just to confuse you, this term is not always used to describe the weapon, but rather the person who is using it.

Peg: Another name for your stand or place when shooting driven game.

Piece: What you put into your pocket or knapsack for your lunch when stalking on the hill.

Rut: The mating time for deer. The Roe rut takes place from the last week of July to around the Tenth of August but this can vary (there is also a false rut in late September). Rutting activity for Roe is highest if the weather is dry but sultry with the threat of thunder.  Red Deer rut usually from late September until the end of October and the onset is usually triggered by cold weather.

Switch: A mature stag which has just four points - brow points and beam points , but the antlers are usually quite long.

Target: The last place where you shoot a deer! It's the white or paler area on the backside of the deer.

Tosser/eejit/****hole/********* or any other suitable adjective: The person who thinks it's clever to shoot deer or birds at extreme long range and thereby increase the chance of wounding the deer or peppering the bird.

Walked up mixed shooting : see first paragraph of Walked up mixed shooting / rough shooting

Rough shooting : see  first paragraph of Walked up mixed shooting / rough shooting

Yeld: Adjective used in particular to describe Red Hinds - it means barren and refers to Red Hinds which have not produced a calf in the summer. 

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