Both Barrels June 2025 - Hawke's Bay

Well Opening weekend seems like a distant memory now, while we all hoped for some good heavy rain to fill up ponds and dams, most places are still very dry for this time of the year. This has affected number of ducks in many traditional areas, with many hunters finding it a bit patchy due to the lack of water, from what we have seen over the last few weeks there seems to be really good numbers of ducks back nearer the ranges and not as many in the lowland rivers and ponds.

As usual hunters over the region have had mixed success, those shooting on stubble have reported really good numbers of paradise ducks and a canada geese. With many of these maize paddocks  being replanted in grass, there is a great opportunity for good PR with our farming communities, paradise ducks, geese and in places swans often hammer these new plantings, so it’s worth approaching landowners  for permission to hunt these areas, creating a “win win” with hunting for licence holders  and helping chase the birds of the new grass for the landowner. We have really noticed an increase in Canada geese numbers throughout Hawkes Bay, particularly in Central Hawkes Bay and Porangahau, whilst they aren’t controlled under the gamebird licence anymore, they add variety and opportunity for waterfowl hunters, they are challenging to hunt, and great eating

With closing weekend fast approaching, there should be better hunting with more hunters out and about disturbing the ducks, as we have said before one of the keys to good duck hunting is being able to keep the ducks moving, many of large ponds that aren’t shot much during the season will be holding large duck numbers that will hopefully be disturbed creating better hunting for all. Whether you are hunting on a farm or on the river, it often pays dividends to go stalking other farm dams or the river in quiet parts of the day, whilst the rest of the team stay in the maimai, often generating success for themselves and their mates back in the hide.

Many hunters are using steel shot for their stubble and paddock hunting, saying they shoot better, not having to adjust for the change from the steel they use over water to the lead over paddocks, the obvious and added advantage is if you only use steel, there is less chance of catching yourself out with accidental lead shot use over water.

River hunting provides some great opportunities and there is always a good chance of encountering pheasant or quail, a wonderful addition to any hunter’s menu. Hawkes Bay has a good population of pheasants, with most riverbeds and young pine blocks supporting good numbers, topped up by pheasants that “refugee” out of preserves, and by a good number of donated birds from a local preserve that we released throughout the bay’s riverbeds last year. These donated Pheasants were banded and released in small numbers over many sites, so if you shoot a pheasant please check if its banded and let us know the band number and area shot, we promise we will not tell everyone your favourite spot.

Please select here to enter the pheasant band details – please remember you don’t need to send us your band, keep it as trophy if you like, but please fill in the details below, so we know how many of these birds are harvested and how far they have travelled.

For the hunter who likes a different challenge, there is an abundance of Pūkeko throughout the region with many landowners happy to allow hunters access, it’s a great way to get novice hunters involved as many find Pukeko a little easier to hit than a pheasant exploding from cover or a duck rocketing past a maimai. Hunters are reminded that Pukeko are classed as waterfowl, to seek permission, accept you may not always be allowed access and who knows what opportunities may unfold, while remembering that we are all ambassadors for our recreation.

If you are hunting upland game in riverbed, I would suggest you use steel shot, at least that way if you encounter waterfowl within their open season; that’s ducks and pukeko, you can legally hunt them too.

Lead Shot and Waterfowl Hunting

As I said in the last both barrels newsletter, several hunters caught themselves out by using or being in possession of lead shot ammunition in their duck hunting maimais, so here is a wee reminder. It is an offense to use or possess lead shot ammunition within 200 meters of open water while attempting to hunt waterfowl, this applies to all gauges including .410.     

Too many waterfowl hunters are surprised when we find the ammunition they are using is lead; not steel as they thought, often we end up confirming this for them with magnet. Most, if not all non -toxic ammunition has “Steel” “Bismuth” or “Hevi Shot” printed both on the box and on each cartridge, while in most cases lead does not. It is easy to confirm the difference between steel and lead shot with a magnet, unfortunately if our ranging team does this for you, it is too late. Our advice is simple; if your ammunition does not have the type of shot printed on it, assume it is lead.

Junior Events

Junior Duck Hunting Adventure

There was no better time than Youth Week for the best junior hunting adventure in New Zealand, held in the Central Hawkes Bay.

Fish & Game welcomed eight young hunters from all over New Zealand to the Wilson wetland; All were winners of our Junior Duck Hunting Adventure competition. Our young hunters came from as far away as Auckland and Mid Canterbury to experience the chance to hunt on some wetlands created by the landowners in conjunction with Fish & Game and the Game Bird Habitat Trust.

On the first afternoon, we took them through a session of gun safety & all young hunters had a go at simulated sporting clay target shooting to prepare for their hunting adventure the next morning. A shout out to Patangata Clay Target Club and Dave Hern (Clay target champ) who provided one on one tuition and mentorship for our lucky winners. Following a duck dinner that night and some gear selection, our lucky winners were up at 4.30 am to get ready for their hunts.

Split across two sites, one team hunted Ben and Beth Wilson’s wetland, and the other team hunted Gerald Wilson’s nearby wetland. Early morning fog provided a little challenge but that didn’t prevent our young hunters showing they could cut the mustard with some of the best hunters out there. The clay target training paid off with our young hunters all contributing to a great harvest that enabled each of them to head home with a whole mallard, and a selection of paradise shelduck and swan breasts ready for them to try out some recipes from the Fish & Game cookbook.

All junior hunters received a goodie bag kindly provided by our sponsors, Hamills Napier, Stoney Creek, Ridgeline, Killwell & Hunting & Fishing. A big thank you to Hunting & Fishing Palmerston North for sponsoring the ammunition for the weekend and providing all of the winners with a head torch.

This amazing opportunity to support the next generation of hunters would not have been possible without the support of Ben & Gerald Wilson and their families for hosting us and Dame Lynda Topp for her guidance.

Click here to see Dame Lynda Topps video of the mornings experience https://youtu.be/CJoNSdmaSak

The lucky young hunters with Corina Jordan CEO and Dame Linda Topp Fish and Game NZ Patron. B/ The team with their harvested  game.

Juniors Simulated Field Clay Target Shoot

 This second event on the 15 June was an exciting and challenging, simulated field, clay target shoot that we ran, in conjunction with Tunanui Station. The team at Tunanui Station have converted some of their famous pheasant drives into an equally challenging commercial clay target shoots, the arrival of innovative clay target throwers that can throw a clay over 200 meters has made this possible. The shoots offer a range of high, fast, incoming and crossing targets, very much the same as the shooting one would encounter on a driven pheasant hunt or when hunting waterfowl on big water.

Right on target at the Tunanui Simulated field shoot.

We started off with a quick BBQ lunch, followed by a safety briefing for the minders and then a briefing for the shooters. We were lucky to have Robbie Danks there as coach, the six boys and two girls were assigned their own minder, and a short drive had us at our first site. We started off with each junior shooter getting five targets under the watchful eye of the experts one at a time. The Tunanui team were able to slow the speed down, making it easier for them to “get their eye in” and with Robbie on hand to coach, everyone was soon hitting most of their targets.  We then lined up the shooters and minders to their eight drawn “pegs” just like they would in a driven pheasant hunt, and we were ready for action, starting off a slower nicely spaced flurry over the line giving all the shooters time to reload between targets.  With the new technology throwers, the team were able to adjust the speed, frequency and difficulty of the targets, this coupled with varying sites made an interesting and challenging afternoon for our eight incredibly lucky young hunters. We ended the day with a really exciting “fast and furious flurry” of multiple targets just like in a driven pheasant hunt over the line of junior shooters, then gave some of the parents and minders a turn. The standard of shooting by all the juniors was incredibly good, with the consensus that the juniors beat their older more experienced parents and minders.

We would like to thank Andrew and Dan from Tunanui Station, Beard Brothers for their sponsorship of the sausages for lunch and the team of minders and coaches for all their help in making this a safe and very exciting afternoon for our lucky winners.

Check out the day’s highlights: https://youtube.com/shorts/--yAASWHYW4?feature=share

The Shooting line	Simulated field coaches  working their magic.

Junior Driven Pheasant Hunt 10 August. 

This hunt will be hosted by a world class upland game preserve after their main season has finished on the 10 August. Hawkes Bay has been lucky to have similar hunts previously, where opportunities were plentiful, smiles on juniors and parents’ faces were universal; although I’m sure many of the parents were trying hard to hide their envy at the juniors getting the sort of hunt than many adult hunters dream of for free. This hunt promises to deliver lifelong memories for 9 very lucky winners. Ideally you will be able to bring a side by side or under and over gun, (not semi-automatic) and ammunition for 12 or 20 gauge will be supplied.

How do I enter – all junior hunters purchasing a 2025 Hawkes Bay Junior full season gamebird license will be eligible for this draw. Visit the Hawkes Bay Fish and Game Facebook page or follow the link to lodge your entry.

https://forms.office.com/r/Q9YCZjUCwk

Other important News and Events

Hawkes Bays Fish and Game’s, New Junior Fin & Feather Club.

By establishing "Feather & Fin Juniors," we aim to create a nurturing environment where young enthusiasts can safely explore and develop their interests in fishing and gamebird hunting, fostering a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors and conservation.

Mission - To foster a love for trout fishing and duck hunting among young people by providing a safe, inclusive, and educational environment where they can connect with nature, learn essential outdoor skills, and build lasting friendships.

Who It's For - Young people aged 11–18 in the Hawke’s Bay region who are interested in outdoor adventures, conservation, and learning the art of fly fishing and game bird hunting.

For more information check out our Facebook page, visit the website or select here.

Junior River Fly Fishing Workshop

On Wednesday 2^nd July we have an on-river juniors’ workshop which is suitable for 13–17-year-olds who are looking to upskill and gain more experience on the river. We'll fire up the BBQ for a sausage sizzle lunch but bring plenty of snacks to keep those energy levels up! For any 10–12-year-olds that are keen to join, your welcome to register but a caregiver will need to accompany them on the day. Only 10 spaces available so click here to register https://forms.office.com/r/CC1tbgur3g Cost is $39ea.

Fly Tying Workshops

For all our hunters who also fish we have these fly-tying workshops that can help wile away the winter days before fishing season kicks off. These workshops will have you tying like a pro. Learn how to tie patterns that match the local insect life and water conditions, tweak colours, sizes & materials to suit specific trout behaviour or seasons. Get those creative juices flowing with this unique art form and it's even more satisfying when it leads to that awesome catch. You control the craftmanship, durability and materials - often resulting in better quality flies than you can purchase. So, join in and give it a go. Cost $25ea - all materials supplied. We have Junior’s, Women’s & Men’s Workshops available. Register here  https://forms.office.com/r/Ls3yE9w73Y

Fish & Fowl Community Market Day – Saturday 13^th September 9am-1pm

We are busy making plans for the Fish & Fowl Community Market Day that will be held at the Game Farm in Jervoistown.

It’s time to start clearing out the garage and give your outdoor gear a second chance to shine! The Fish & Fowl Community Market Day is your one-stop shop for buying and selling pre-loved fishing and game bird hunting equipment. Snap up a bargain or make some cash while connecting with fellow enthusiasts in our community.

More details to come but keep an eye on our Facebook page for further details and how to register a stand. https://www.facebook.com/HBFishandGame