Both Barrels June 2024 - Central South Island

Outlook for July and beyond

Pictured above: A late-season mixed bag hunt from a coastal wetland” - credit Rikus De Lange

The world is your oyster for game bird hunting in the CSI Region in late June, through July, and even beyond.

The last day of the main season falls on July 28^th, the last Sunday of the month.

Most hunters tend to focus on mallards but why not mix it up this July and target a bag limit of black swan.

Coastal wetlands like Wainono Lagoon are a great spot to target black swan and population monitoring indicates a high population there.

Beyond July 28th, upland game hunting continues until the last Sunday in August.

Additionally, West of State Highway 1, the paradise shelduck extended season runs until the last Sunday in September.

Be sure to read-up on the 2024 game bird hunting regulations guide here before heading out.

Opening Weekend harvest survey results

Opening harvest numbers are in so thanks to the licenced hunters who participated in the annual game harvest survey.

Opening Weekend harvest for 2024 was moderate compared to the last 10 openings. This was to be expected as our pre-season population monitoring indicated moderate bird numbers.

On average hunters harvested 15 game birds for the weekend, made up of about 11 mallards, 3 paradise shelduck and the occasional black swan or shoveler.

The game harvest survey continues fortnightly until the end of the season.

Thanks in advance to those hunters that will receive harvest survey phone calls over the coming weeks.

Late season migration

The bulk of the main season is now behind us and it’s time for the annual late season migration. Not of birds; but of hunters from the North Island.

We believe visiting hunters should also set their sights on spending future Opening weekends in the CSI Region.

There are so many ponds that go un-hunted down here; it’s a case of ‘not enough hunters’ rather than ‘not enough birds.’

We reckon that more hunters in the region on Opening Weekend will help to keep the birds on the move and lead to an improved harvest.

With a bit of effort, door knocking etc, visiting hunters, or local hunters for that matter, can secure an Opening Weekend spot down here.

Don’t delay, now is the time to put in the work to find next year’s Opening Weekend pond.

A great place to start would be the numerous private irrigation ponds scattered throughout the Canterbury Plains between the Rakaia and Ōrāri rivers. 

Ponds can be discovered on Google Earth and other aerial imagery resources or by driving the rural roads.

Door knocking at the farmers house to politely request access permission for a future hunt just may see you set up with some great hunting for years to come. 

Please be respectful if your access request is turned down and move on to the next pond.

And please, whatever you do, do not push out a local hunter from their traditional opening spot!

Be social - take a newbie duck hunting

Picture above: Taking a newbie out hunting can be a good reminder of the social nature of duck hunting – credit Rhys Adams

We are encouraging you to ‘be social’ and take a newbie out duck hunting this season to show them why we love duck hunting and to share in the harvest of free-range game bird meat.

Putting the harvesting of game birds to one side, it’s easy to see that the social part of duck hunting is a huge part of enjoying hunting. For example, the banter when an easy shot is missed, the coffee break chats about favourite guns and gear, and the shared laughs when a caller ‘squeals’ instead of quacks when the over-excited user blows the caller far too hard.        

‘Day’ licences provide a great opportunity for newbies to give duck hunting a go; $26 for adults and $10 for juniors aged 12-17. Children aged 11 and under can purchase a whole season licence for just $5.

The Matariki holiday weekend, Friday June 28^th to Sunday 30^th provides a great opportunity to be social and take a newbie out hunting.

If this is a youngster you’re taking out, pick a warm-ish forecast, avoiding hard frosts if possible as it can get uncomfortably cold through June and July – evening hunts are usually much warmer than morning hunts.

You can grab a game bird licence on our website here.

Can a $20 metal detector save a trip to the dentist?

Picture above:  Metal detecting for steel shot in a plucked mallrd duck - photo Credit Rhys Adams

Every now and then I’ll fail to find and remove all the shot pellets in my harvested game bird meat.

A few years back my delicious roast duck dinner was interrupted when I chipped a tooth due to biting into a steel shot – a trip to the dentist was required.

That led me to buy a metal detector to aid in finding hidden shot pellets.

Now the sky is the limit with the price and quality of metal detectors; I went for the budget ‘wand’ option for about $20 on Trade Me.

Since purchasing I have used it on about 20 birds and found that the depth it detects shot is a bit limited – meaning I must run it over all sides, nooks, crannies and cavities of the bird.

I believe I have missed only 1, maybe 2, shot pellets, so far.

My conclusion: a cheap $20 detector is helpful in reducing the chance of biting into a shot pellet but you are likely to miss the occasional pellet – especially if you do it in a rush.

I do wonder if a more expensive metal detector might do a more reliable and quicker job.      

Looking for a place to hunt?

Click here to Jump on our website to check out maps and info for the four wetlands owned or administered by Central South Island Fish & Game where you can get a free permit to hunt.

 

Hot Barrels

Rhys Adams, Fish & Game Officer