Guns to the sky as duck hunting season begins in Eastern region

From left: Keen duck hunters Tristan Kirk, James Thomas and Louise Burrows are enjoying the first day of the new season today.

Duck hunters were expecting plenty of sun and clear skies as the new season started today.

Eastern Fish and Game councillor Mark Sceats planned to leave home at 4am today, bound for one of his favoured shooting spots.

“I love it,” said Sceats, who has been duck hunting since 1968.

With little rain recently, hunters near ponds or any permanent water sites were likely to have a better chance than those shooting elsewhere, he said.

The maize harvest is late because of wet conditions at the time of planting. Replanting results in fewer-than-normal maize paddocks available to shooters this weekend.

Sceats said duck numbers were good and indicated there were more adults than juveniles this year.

“Good calling and good decoy spreads will be the order of the day as the older ducks are likely to be more wary.

“Those shooting nearer the coast might have an advantage as with fine, calm weather, the ducks normally head out to sea and ‘raft up’.”

Eastern Fish and Game officer Mat McDougall said there were fears Cyclone Gabrielle had affected the paradise shelduck population on the East Coast.

“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 okay.

“The areas that were down have lots of paradise normally, so we aren’t too concerned.”

Black swan numbers looked healthy in management areas A1 and A2, McDougall said.

“Upland game [pheasant and quail] was down in some areas last year but with the drier summer, they should have bounced back.

“For those who hunt the Timberlands forests, permits are now available.”