DORTMUND, Germany: German hunters tried to convince the jury at a national stag calling championship that they can imitate a bellowing red deer most realistically.
The unique tradition goes back hundreds of years and was initially aimed at feigning a stag’s rival during the rutting season so the deer comes out. The trick gave hunters a chance to better assess the stag before deciding whether to shoot it.
The competition took place Friday at the Jagd & Hund, or hunting and dog, trade fair in the western city of Dortmund. There were no animals, only bellowing men wearing traditional hunters’ garb including green hats with a tuft of chamois hair.
The hunters used specially made ox horns, triton snail shells, glass cylinders, the hollow stems of the giant hogweed, and a number of artificially produced instruments to amplify the sound and resonance.
A stag’s vocalizations are not only very diverse, but also vary according to age, state of mind and duration of the rut, during which they become increasingly hoarse, as well as the mood of the herd, according to the organizers.
In Dortmund, the hunters were asked to compete in three disciplines: the call of the old, searching stag, the call of the dominant male in a pack of does, and the calling duel between two equally strong stags at the height of the rut. The members of the jury listened with closed eyes to make sure nothing would distract them from the sound.
“The stag calling for me, it’s the fascinating thing to play with the stags,” said Fabian Wenzel, who won the championship. “And maybe shoot an old stag after calling him — that’s the biggest thing for every hunter.”
Wenzel, a hunter from the small village of Nüdlingen in Bavaria, won the title for the fifth time in a row and will participate in the European Stag Calling Championships, which will take place in Lithuania in October.
Think you can bellow like a stag? German hunters compete in a national deer calling championship
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Think you can bellow like a stag? German hunters compete in a national deer calling championship
- Unique tradition goes back hundreds of years and was initially aimed at feigning a stag’s rival during the rutting season so the deer comes out
- A stag’s vocalizations are not only very diverse, but also vary according to age, state of mind and duration of the rut
WWII leader Churchill to be removed from UK banknotes
- The next series of banknotes due to be issued by the Bank of England will feature animals native to the UK
- The bank will gather views later this year about the specific wildlife the public would like to feature on the next set of banknotes
LONDON: World War II leader Winston Churchill is to be dropped from the UK £5 banknote in favor of a nature scene, sparking outrage from some lawmakers who said he should not be replaced by an otter or badger.
Novelist Jane Austen, artist J. M. W. Turner and mathematician and codebreaker Alan Turing, are also due to be phased out on the £10, £20 and £50 banknotes respectively as part of a redesign.
The next series of banknotes due to be issued by the Bank of England will feature animals native to the UK, in a shift away from images of prominent Britons.
Possibilities, subject to a public consultation, include badgers and otters as well as frogs, hedgehogs, barn owls and newts. Plants and landscapes will complete the scenes depicted.
“For more than 50 years, the bank has proudly showcased many inspirational historical figures who have helped shape national thought, innovation, leadership and values on its banknotes,” the bank said.
“The change to wildlife imagery ... provides an opportunity to celebrate another important aspect of the UK,” it added.
The bank will gather views later this year about the specific wildlife the public would like to feature on the next set of banknotes.
Bank of England chief cashier Victoria Cleland said the key driver for a new series of banknotes was how to stay ahead of counterfeiters.
“Nature is a great choice from a banknote authentication perspective and means we can showcase the UK’s rich and varied wildlife on the next series of banknotes,” she added.
- ‘Shaped this nation’ -
The new banknotes will not appear for several years.
They will continue to feature a portrait of the monarch King Charles III on the other side. Banknotes with the late Queen Elizabeth II also remain in circulation.
Previous banknotes have pictured other national figures including novelist Charles Dickens, physicist and chemist Michael Faraday, composer Edward Elgar, nurse Florence Nightingale and architect Christopher Wren.
The most recent series — rolled out between 2016 and 2021 — was printed for the first time on polymer rather than paper.
Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, was among lawmakers who criticized the new nature theme.
“Let’s celebrate our wonderful British wildlife, sure, but Winston Churchill helped save our country and the whole of Europe from fascism,” he wrote on X.
“He deserves better than being replaced by a badger,” he said.
Main opposition Conservative lawmaker Alex Burghart called the decision “outrageous.”
“He (Churchill) earned his place on our five pound note. He must not be replaced with an otter,” he said on X, adding the “great people who shaped this nation” should not be forgotten.
