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Spotlighting or lamping (also known as jacklighting, shining,
illuminating, and pit-lamping) is a method of
hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
nocturnal animals using
off-road vehicle
An off-road vehicle, sometimes referred to as an overland or adventure vehicle, is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with de ...
s and high-powered lights,
spotlights, lamps or
flashlight
A flashlight (American English, US, Canadian English, Canada) or torch (British English, UK, Australian English, Australia) is a portable hand-held electric lamp. Formerly, the light source typically was a miniature incandescent light bulb, b ...
s, that makes special use of the
eyeshine
The ''tapetum lucidum'' ( ; ; ) is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrates and some other animals. Lying immediately behind the retina, it is a retroreflector. It reflects visible light back through the retina, increasing the light a ...
revealed by many animal species. A further important aspect is that many animals (e.g. foxes and rabbits) often remain to continually stare at the light and do not appear to see the light as a threat as they normally would view a human. It is possible to carefully approach animals on foot to a short distance if the bright light is continuously maintained on the animal to greatly improve chances of successful killing. Spotlighting may also be used as a method of surveying nocturnal fauna. Repeated, frequent spotlighting may have a detrimental effect on animals and is discouraged.
Technique
The spotting and shooting often take place from the moving vehicle. Experienced drivers on familiar territory (such as farmers in their own paddocks) may turn off the vehicle headlights to minimize the distractions.
The most common vehicles used are light
four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...
trucks and
utilities
A public utility company (usually just utility) is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service (often also providing a service using that infrastructure). Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and r ...
. A team may consist of three persons: the driver, the shooter, and the spotter. The shooter and spotter stand side by side behind the cab, holding onto a bar at the front of the tray or on top of the cab, which allows them a good 360 degree view. The spotter sweeps the surrounding countryside with a powerful hand-held lamp with a tightly focused beam.
Spotlighting can be conducted by two persons where the driver operates the spotlight or alone where the driver spotlights using a remote mounted spotlight or
automotive lighting
The lighting system of a motor vehicle consists of lighting and signalling devices mounted to or integrated into the front, rear, sides, and in some cases the top of a motor vehicle. They illuminate the road ahead for the driver and increase t ...
and shoots from the driver's seat of the vehicle.
Legality
Australia
Various rules govern nocturnal hunting and hunting from motor vehicles, but typically the use of illumination devices is prohibited for
deer hunting
Deer hunting is hunting for deer for meat and sport, an activity which dates back tens of thousands of years. Venison, the name for deer meat, is a nutritious and natural food source of animal protein that can be obtained through deer hunting. ...
. Commercial hunters are normally exempt from such regulations where the emphasis is upon population control.
New Zealand
Spotlighting on New Zealand
Department of Conservation
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment ...
land is prohibited by law.
North America
Spotlighting is illegal in many U.S. states and Canadian provinces.
In Manitoba, spotlighting is illegal except for status Indians.
In British Columbia, spotlighting is illegal except for status Indians.
In Saskatchewan, spotlighting is illegal without exception.
Great Britain and Ireland: ''lamping''
Lamping is a similar practice in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
and
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
of hunting at night using powerful lamps and either guns, birds of prey or dogs. It does not always involve vehicles. Animals associated with this form of hunting include fox, rabbit, and hare.
In England, Scotland, and Wales, most forms of hunting with dogs have been made illegal by the
Hunting Act 2004
The Hunting Act 2004 (c 37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which bans the hunting of most wild mammals (notably foxes, deer, hares and mink) with dogs in England and Wales, subject to some strictly limited exemptions; the ...
but
rabbit
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...
s and
rats were specifically included on a list of exemptions, therefore lamping these animals with dogs is still legal. Hunting fox, rabbit and hare with dogs is legal in Northern Ireland. In Britain lamping
fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
es with dogs has been rendered illegal, however lamping in order to shoot them remains legal.
In Northern Ireland, lamping is also practiced against
foxes
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
and
rabbits
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...
.
In the Republic of Ireland, it is legal to hunt
foxes
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
and
rabbits
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...
with lamps, with a license and landowner's permission, but it is illegal to use a "mechanically propelled vehicle" or to hunt
hares
Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The gen ...
or
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
with lights.
illegal to lamp from a vehicle on or near a public road. An attempt to forbid hunting with guns between midnight and 6 a.m. failed in 2017.
Once an animal has been located in the beam of light, it is either shot or the dog(s) released. The dogs used are typically
lurcher
A lurcher is a cross-bred dog resulting from mating a Greyhound or other sighthound with a dog of another type, commonly a herding dog or a terrier. The lurcher was for hundreds of years strongly associated with poaching; in modern times it ...
s (cross between a
sighthound
Sighthounds, also called gazehounds, are a Dog type, type of dog, hounds that hunt primarily by sight and speed, rather than by scent and endurance as scent hounds do.
Appearance
These dogs specialize in pursuing prey, keeping it in sight, an ...
and any other breed of dog), or
longdog
A long dog (also long-dog or longdog) is any dog of sighthound type, whether pure-bred or not. It is usually a cross-breed between two sighthounds of different breeds, one of which is usually a Greyhound It is distinct from the lurcher, which ...
s (cross between two
sight hound
Sighthounds, also called gazehounds, are a type of dog, hounds that hunt primarily by sight and speed, rather than by scent and endurance as scent hounds do.
Appearance
These dogs specialize in pursuing prey, keeping it in sight, and overpo ...
s, typically a greyhound and a
whippet
The Whippet is a dog breed of medium size. It is a sighthound breed that originated in England, descended from the Greyhound. Whippets today still strongly resemble a smaller Greyhound. Part of the hound group, Whippets have relatively few ...
), but may be a cross of many breeds.
Although white light is often used for lamping, red or orange filters are preferred, as this has a lesser effect on the
night vision
Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions, either naturally with scotopic vision or through a night-vision device. Night vision requires both sufficient spectral range and sufficient intensity range. Humans have poor night vi ...
of the hunter (human or dog).
References
{{Reflist
External links
Unfavourable view of lampingfrom a badger website
Lamping Code of Practicefrom the British Association for Shooting and Conservation
See also
*
Fishing light attractor
A fishing light attractor is a fishing aid that uses lighting devices attached to structure above water or suspended underwater to attract fish at night. This is taking advantage of the phototactic behaviour exhibited by many species of fish, who ...
Hunting methods