Duck hunting season opens this weekend. Photo / NZME
Duck hunting season opens this weekend. Photo / NZME
Hunters around the country have their fingers and toes crossed for some fowl weather this weekend with the game bird season getting under way.
Fish & Game New Zealand chief executive Corina Jordan will be joining scores of other hunters gathering wild, free-range game birds this season.
In a statement, Jordan said a good breeding season meant opening weekend looked promising for hunters.
“There are plenty of birds around throughout the country after several good breeding seasons, but they have been concentrated where there’s water over summer. With a bit more rain they will spread out to other wetlands and farm dams providing more hunting opportunities.
“The dry summer had game bird hunters worried, but a good rain would bring smiles to the faces of the approximately 60,000 people who get out in the wild on opening weekend,” she said.
Fish and Game New Zealand chief executive Corina Jordan. Photo / Fish and Game NZ
“We just need some really bad weather for opening weekend – that’s what makes for great hunting, and that’s what hunters throughout the country will be hoping for.
Jordan said hunters loved getting out with their dogs and spending time with friends and family.
“Hunting is also a great way to get kids off devices, out in fresh air and teach important skills, instil a desire to protect the environment and help them learn independence.
“Women are also increasingly getting out and having a go, and my experience is that it’s liberating. It’s time to share with your hunting buddies, but it also means you can bring back something delicious and healthy for dinner.
She said it was also a great time to celebrate the massive conservation effort put in by hunters.
“If it wasn’t for Fish & Game and hunters, there wouldn’t be a lot of these wetlands left. The work done to protect these threatened habitats benefits not just waterfowl that we hunt but provides refuge to native species too.”
Regional outlook for duck hunting season
Eastern Fish & Game senior officer Matthew McDougall said they were predicting a similar number of mallard ducks to last year however hunters may need to be a little sharper on their calling and decoy spread will need to be on point as more of the population will be adults.
Duck banding indicated the number of juveniles wasn’t as good as last year but there were reasonable numbers of adults compared with the last few years.
Adult mallards were a little more savvy and harder to hunt than juveniles, McDougall said.
“Cyclone Gabrielle had us really concerned that the paradise shelduck population on the East Coast may have taken a beating.
“Cyclone Bola in 1988 had a massive effect on the paradise shelduck population so we were happy to see that in the main the populations were generally OK.
“The areas that were down have lots of paradise normally, so we aren’t too concerned.”
Black swan numbers look very healthy in management areas A1 and A2 so hunters are encouraged to make the most of them. Upland game (pheasant and quail) was down in some areas last year but with the dryer summer they should have bounced back.
