Both Barrels July 2022

Well, the duck hunting season is over for another year.

We hope all hunters had a successful season with plenty of enjoyment, laughs, and especially birds on the ground.

While the duck season may be over, there are still plenty of opportunities around the region to get out hunting until the 28^th of August for Pukeko and Pheasant.

Pukeko

Pukeko are abundant around the north of Taranaki, and farmers will often welcome hunters shooting them as they can damage crops in spring and poke holes in silage stacks and bailage.

Damp or wet mornings are often the best time to hunt pukes as they come out from cover to feed in paddocks and stream margins.

A walk-up shoot with a line of several hunters and dogs around areas of suitable habitat is often an excellent way to get onto some pukekos.

The bag limit for pukeko is 10 per person per day in Area C and 5 in Areas A and B.

Pheasant

Pheasant hunting permits in Harakeke and Tauwhare forests near Whanganui are available in a weekly draw.

To participate in the draw, hunters must obtain a free permit from Taranaki F&G (0212700239 or taranaki@fishandgame.org.nz), then before noon each Thursday, contact Taranaki F&G to go into the draw for a permit for the coming weekend.

Harakeke is divided into two blocks, and Tauwhare Forest is a single block, all available on Saturday and Sunday only.

Hunters can apply for one or more blocks and/or days, but if hunting as a group, then just one application per group.

Applicants will be advised of their success or otherwise each Thursday afternoon.

Being successful in the draw is a condition of a valid access permit for that particular time and place.

For the Nukumaru hunting area, there is no weekly draw, but hunters need a permit from Taranaki F&G, and they must contact the respective grazing lessee listed on their permit before hunting.

Above Right: Curly McEwen and willow with a well-grown Taranaki pheasant.

Duck Band returns

Please remember to send in any details of duck bands.

If you've successfully harvested a duck with a band on its leg, we need your help.

This information is crucial to our research and management - so please provide as much detail as possible, including an approximate location.

This is for our records only; plus, if you send the band in before the 31^st of August, you go in the Banding Together draw to win two boxes of Banded XD decoys.

The preferred method is to fill out an online form via the link: https://fishandgame.org.nz/game-bird-hunting-in-new-zealand/banding-form/

or else contact the Taranaki Fish & Game office on 0212700239 or email taranaki@fishandgame.org.nz

Once staff receive the band details, we will get the information to you as quickly as possible.

The data we receive allows us to let the hunter know where the bird was banded, the sex and age of the bird when it was banded and how far it travelled from the banding site to the recovery location.

Facebook Page

Taranaki Fish and Game have recently set up a Facebook page as another way to keep license holders informed about what is happening around the Taranaki region and to show what staff are doing out in the field.

Click the link below to check it out:

https://facebook.com/TaranakiFishGame/

Jacob Morison, Taranaki Fish & Game