Both Barrels April 2025 - Central South Island

Welcome to the 2025 Game Bird Season

Opening Day is Saturday the 3^rd of May.

It’s that time of year again, and the countdown is on! Fast approaching for many hunters is the much-anticipated opening weekend of the duck season. The occasion of opening weekend for many hunters stems far beyond the pure act of shooting game birds, it is a time that brings family and friends together, where laughs are shared, and the ongoing debate of bacon and egg pie recipes continue.

Image above: It's game on for the 2025 hunting season - credit Richie Cosgrove

A bonus for many hunters is the chance at taking home a free-ranged bird or three for the dinner table, all harvested by smart hunting and retrieved by a well-trained gun dog is the icing on the cake.

If you haven’t yet purchased your licence, then grab your credit or debit card and click here or head down to your local licence agent and grab one with your supplies.

Many birds about?

Fish & Game Officer Nikki Dellaway surveys game bird populations at Wainono Lagoon credit Blake Harper

Overall, the 2025 game bird numbers appear to be at moderate levels.

Wainono pre-season game survey – April 2025

Mallard and paradise shelduck numbers were moderate.

Black swan numbers were lower compared to the two previous seasons, but they still remained moderate.

Shoveler were high in numbers, and we expect there will be plenty of opportunity to target these species at Wainono during the season.

This count can be considered a conservative estimate of game birds present on the day.

Canterbury Plains/North Otago dabbling duck (mallard) survey – March 2025

This year’s mallard numbers show a moderate and stable population, with the counts reflecting the third highest index since the survey began in 2006. The trend has tended to be consistently growing in recent years, indicating a healthy mallard population.

CSI Regional Paradise shelduck moult survey – January 2025

Paradise shelduck numbers remain stable throughout the region, although there have been localised declines at Washdyke and Wainono.

CSI Regional Black swan survey – January 2025

Black swan numbers also remain stable and have tended to increase in recent years, with notable rises at Wainono and various lagoons and ponds along the South Canterbury coast.

Wainono access bridge reopened

Poingdestres Bridge reopened - credit Blake Harper

Repair work on Poingdestres Bridge is completed and can now be used by vehicles weighing no more than 2 tonnes.  

This is great news for those hunters who hunt the Fish & Game owned Wainono Wetland Reserve and southern end of Wainono Lagoon.

The Waimate District Council has worked hard to ensure the bridge repairs were assessed and completed efficiently, using the necessary specialist techniques.

Big thanks to the council staff and councillors for making it all possible. We also appreciate the patience of licence holders and other users of the Wainono area during this process.

Scout your ducks to ensure post opening day success!

Hunter Craig McKenzie positioning his decoys on the Opihi River for an evening shoot - credit Richie Cosgrove

Opening day often provides quality shooting on ponds, lagoons, and wetlands where game birds have remained undisturbed for a long period of time. However, after a day of hunting, some ducks start to disperse in search of safer water. This creates an opportunity to target new locations, particularly along local rivers.

Willow-lined riverbanks, backwaters, and slack currents can be especially effective. When scouting these areas, don’t be discouraged if you only see a handful of birds. If a few ducks are using a specific spot on the river, it means that particular area is appealing to them. Once opening weekend stirs up the usual roosting sites, setting up in a well scouted river location can put you in the right place for steady action as birds look for quieter water. Those spots that originally held only a few birds will be the same type of areas ducks will seek out when searching for new water to park up for the day.

One advantage of these spots is that you don’t need many decoys. In fact, too many decoys can sometimes work against you, as mallards may become wary after seeing large spreads during opening weekend. Additionally, piling up too many decoys in a river setting can look unnatural.

All you need is half a dozen to a dozen decoys, along with a MOJO duck if possible. A MOJO duck can be especially effective in these situations, as ducks tend to fly higher come Sunday after opening day. The motion from the MOJO duck grabs their attention, often pulling them in for a closer look.

An added bonus of these spots is that there is often enough debris along river beds to make a makeshift maimai.

Looking for a place to hunt after Opening Weekend?

CSI Fish & Game administer hunting at four wetlands.

In just a few easy steps, you can hunt these wetlands.

These wetlands are balloted for Opening Weekend, but after Opening Weekend these wetlands can be hunted by all licence holders, provided you obtain a permit first and if required, contact the landowner prior to hunting.

Click here to jump on our website to check out the wetland maps and info.

While there, save a permit application form, fill it in and email it to us, or alternatively get in direct contact with the office.

CSI Fish & Game contacts: email [email protected] or phone 03 6158400.

Check out this YouTube video of what is on offer at our Fish & Game Wainono Wetland Reserve.

2025 hunting regulations – CSI Region

Be sure to familiarise yourself with the 2025 regulations guide – available online here.

There are no changes to the local Central South Island Region regulations for the 2025.

One regulation reminder is that Chukar hunters are required to report their hunting activities to CSI Fish & Game within a month of the season closing date – for 2025 the reporting deadline is October 1.

If you need any regulation clarified please get in touch with a staff member here at our Temuka Office - PH: 03 615 8400, E: [email protected]

From the field to the table: making the most of your game birds

Hunters harvesting their game birds after a successful day’s hunt, as two future game bird enthusiasts watch on - credit Braided Creative  

Harvesting game birds allows you, your family and friends to enjoy fresh free-ranged meat. Ducks are yum and you can prepare and cook them in so many delicious ways.

Our YouTube channel has some great info to help you get the basics right and then try out some exciting dishes.

To start check out - how-to pluck a duck video here.

Then progress to the kitchen with these recipe ideas: The duck breast, Thai red curry, Duck schnitzel burgers and the high and fast roast mallard.

 

Good luck out there,

Blake Harper, Fish & Game Officer