Wealthy peer Lord Rotherwick's feathers were ruffled when he discovered his west Oxfordshire estate was becoming over-run with pheasants.

Oxford County Court heard yesterday (MON) that Lord Rotherwick, who owns Cornbury Park, at Charlbury, is seeking injunctions against Michael Murphy, of Ramsden, near Woodstock, who leases 3,000 acres of the 6,500-acre estate for shooting rights.

Lord Rotherwick, whose real name is Robin Cayzer, took the case to court claiming Mr Murphy had overstocked the land with about 60,000 pheasants, when the expected limit was 20,000.

His barrister, John Brisby QC, claimed that overstocking could have catastrophic results for the deer inhabiting Wychwood Forest, which is part of the estate. Deer have grazed there since the 14th century.

A feed containing the substance Emtryl laid down for pheasants was also being eaten by the deer - making the venison unfit for human consumption. Mr Brisby QC said: "The overstocking of the pheasants has led to other problems.

"There has been damage to Lord Rotherwick's crops and the drug has been ingested by the deer in Wychwood Forest.

"Lord Rotherwick, who has sole rights to take venison, had to agree to stop taking deer for a period, following the intervention of a Government agency."

The ourt heard that a representative of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has written to Lord Rotherwick, asking and asked for a four-week restriction on deer carcases because it was possible they had eaten some of the feed intended for the pheasants.

Emtryl, a veterinary drug fed to game birds, won't harm pheasants provided it is fed to them 28 days before they are shot, but is not suitable for deer.

The court heard that Mr Murphy had leased land from Lord Rotherwick since 1993 - but the use of Emtryl in feed was not discovered until October last year.

Judge Paul Clark expressed concern for the health of the deer himself during the hearing when he revealed that he often bought venison from Oxford's Covered Market. Lord Rotherwick is now seeking temporary injunctions to reduce overstocking, which is breaching the lease and the 1981 Countryside Wildlife Act, due to Cornbury Park's status as a site of special scientific interest.

He also wants an injunction ordering fences to be erected to prevent pheasants getting on to crops next to Wychwood Forest, and for the use of Emtryl to cease.

The hearing regarding temporary injunctions could pave the way for a compensation claim for £18,000 in the High Court's Chancery Division. The case continues tomorrow (TUES).

In 1991, Lord Rotherwick launched a £1.6m compensation claim against Oxfordshire County Council, following a 24-year battle which he lost over a right of way for walkers through Wychwood Forest.

His father was a shipping magnate, while his grandfather was the first Baron Rotherwick.

Story date: Tuesday 23 February

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