Both Barrels April 2022

The word is - ducks are everywhere! The wet summer has provided the ideal breeding habitat for ducks, and consequently, there are reports of large amounts of ducks around the country.

Jump through to the Southland report and check out their pic of 2000 (yes, that’s right, 2000!) mallards on a single Balfour pond.

Click through the links above to get some great local info on hunting the coming season in your region and tips for maximising your chances of success.

Opening Day, the first Saturday in May, is part of a huge tradition for many kiwis, and this year is looking to be one of the best yet.

The chance to gather some healthy free-range game birds from the outdoors whilst spending time with friends and family is something we should all cherish.

Hunters looking for inspiration onwhat to do with their harvest from nature's supermarket can check out the recipes in theFish & Game cookbook, with over 200 pages of great info, recipes, tips and tricks on what to do with your game birds.

If you’ve missed your copy of the annual game bird special edition of the Fish & Game Magazine, clickhereto view the latest issue online or contact your local fish & Game office to get a hard copy.

This season the Mountain Safety Council tackles one of duck hunting’s central questions in their annual safety messaging for hunters; peas or no peas in your pie? Clickhereto check out their latest message.

For hunters in the top of the North Island, keep an eye out for the invasive pest weed,Manchurian wild rice. We can all do our bit to stop the spread of this nasty plant.

For hunters elsewhere, remember not to use weeds when camming up your maimai as you may unwittingly transfer weeds into an area where they don’t already exist.

You still have a couple of weekends for things on your pre-season checklist,like buying a licence, for scrubbing up your maimai, getting your ammo and giving those decoys a freshen up.

Warm Barrels,

The Team at Fish & Game NZ