New course to teach safe use of night-vision gear

The Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) has launched a new course to educate students on the use of night-vision equipment for controlling wildlife populations in darkness. 

It has been legal to use night-vision scopes to cull deer at night in Scotland since November last year, but the new course will also cover the use of this equipment for the management of foxes and feral pigs. 

The course has been developed by the SGA’s dedicated training centre and the syllabus includes the use of specialised equipment focusing on heat readings, silhouette recognition and pixilation. Course participants will also be taught about identification, animal behaviour observation, and risk assessment. 

SGA training manager Alan Tweedie said: “The new course is a big step for us. We are looking forward to the launch and want to encourage as many people as possible, who use this type of equipment, to sign up. 

“For the public and for wildlife, this can only help in terms of safe, best practice, with animal welfare a key consideration. What we want to encourage is good, professional management where risks are properly assessed and considered before any shot is taken in the dark.”