Both Barrels June 2024 - Hawke's Bay

After such a calm clear opening weekend and start to the gamebird season in general, it was great to finally see some significant rain and wind on the 19 and 20 May. Many shooters saw an increase in waterfowl activity and experienced some great hunting, several shooters we spoke to went from having very quiet evening shoots to close to limit bags of mallards.

After the rain, pond stalking improved, with lots ducks around smaller farm dams and wet gullies, although it was frustrating at times to stalk a dam and find no ducks on it; only to have them take off out of range, from 50 meters or so up the paddock where they were feeding on worms.

With some wet and windy weather forecast between now and the end of the duck hunting season on the 30 June, coupled with Matariki weekend there is every excuse to get out for a hunt before the season ends. If you haven’t hunted yet this season, there is always the option of a gamebird day license, so why not dust off your gear and head out for a hunt, with a three-day weekend there’s time to hunt and do the domestic chores as well.   

Shooters who have been able to shoot on maize stubble have had great shooting with lots of paradise ducks and reasonable numbers of mallards, often with some geese too for a bit of extra variety. Waterfowl hunters with layout blinds shooting these areas should continue to enjoy good shooting.

With such large areas planted in maize this summer, the harvesting has been very spread out, with some still not harvested. Some shooters believe this has pulled the ducks away from feeding on their ponds and lakes and may have made hunting more difficult, particularly when the weather has been calm and allowed the ducks to rest up out at sea.  Those shooters who are able to get out and hunt when the weather has been rougher, particularly when there is a good easterly blow, have been reaping the rewards, with some really good shooting reported. Other natural feed areas around oaks and pin oaks are well worth remembering as ducks come in to eat the acorns, a great bonus is pin oaks are also a magnet for pheasants! 

 A real positive with all the maize around, is the ducks and geese have been in great condition, making for great birds for the table and whilst setting up those not harvested well, for the winter and coming breeding season.

One of the keys to good duck hunting is being able to keep the ducks moving, or going out and finding where the ducks are resting up during the day. Those that go stalking other farm dams or the river in quiet parts of the day, whilst the rest of the team stay at the hide, often generate success for themselves and their mates back in the hide.  Even with evening hunting some of the team stalking during the early part of the evening, often pays dividends for all.    

Our ranging teams accompanied by rural police officers have been out and about, making many contacts with hunters, it was great to see all shooters encountered being pleasant and cooperative with only a few minor indiscretions being picked up. We are confident that we will continue to encounter high levels of compliance when we are out ranging with the rural police team through the rest of the season.

With many shooters also chasing geese and upland game, it easy to get caught out carrying lead when waterfowl hunting. As waterfowl shooters we need to check we haven’t inadvertently left some lead ammo in our bag or belt, and we have replaced the pin in our guns.

Despite feeding in harvested maize fields, ducks will still congregate in backwater pools along the river. Those waterfowl hunters who spend time identifying these sites or stalking the rivers should have a good shooting.

River shooting provides some great opportunities and there is always a good chance of encountering Pheasant or Quail, a wonderful addition to any hunter’s menu. With more staff out ranging and doing field work recently, we have seen good numbers of ducks on some of our rivers and ponds and good numbers of pheasants and quail on river margins.

Some upland game hunters have been enjoying really good success with their pheasant hunting, with popular areas being the Tukituki, Ngaruroro and central Hawkes Bay riverbeds. Any public areas that are near upland game preserves maybe worth a hunt, as there will always be pheasants that have flown out of the preserve, that could provide public hunting opportunities; just be sure you are being safe, respectful of boundaries and aware of other river users.

While we might complain about the dry conditions for duck hunting on ponds and lakes, the lower river levels have made stalking the riverbeds for ducks or upland game much safer and easier for hunters and their dogs.  It’s been a nice change not having to battle flooded rivers when stalking this season, and less risk for dogs with quieter rivers.

As the season progresses those that put in the effort in the field and continue to feed their duck hunting ponds should continue to enjoy good success.

So don’t forget the waterfowl season finishes the Sunday of Matariki weekend 30 June and that once the waterfowl season finishes, there is still lots of opportunity with Pheasant, Quail and Pukeko through to 25 August and don’t forget the opportunities for shooting Canada and Feral Geese as well.

For the hunter who likes a challenge, there is still an abundance of Pūkeko throughout the region with many landowners happy to have the numbers knocked back. Hunters are reminded to seek permission, accept you may not always be granted access and who knows what opportunities may unfold, while remembering that we are all ambassadors for our recreation.