Taranaki > Hunting News May 2009

The opening weekend was a bit of a mixed bag.  We have had both positive and negative feedback from the hunters we have surveyed with comments ranging from “a complete washout” to “the best opening weekend of my life”.  The weather had a big impact on the weekend with low wind and clear skies favouring the birds rather than the hunter. 

Bag limits seems to be achieved in only a few areas over the period with South Taranaki and parts of the Waimarino districts shooting very well indeed.  Most other areas reported that they struggled to achieve a good bag with birds out of range and too far off to call in.

With regards to the rest of the season, the weather will continue to have an effect on bird movement around the region, hunters want the weather to close in and turn nastier to keep the birds down and in-range of the hunter.  The number of hunters going for a weekend shooting traditionally drops off after opening weekend but the challenge of the season’s opening will prompt more to get out more often.  There are still a good numbers of birds out and about and from a hunting opportunity perspective the rest of the season looks very promising.

Daren Smith, Regional Manager, Fish & Game NZ (Taranaki)

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