Wellington Weekly Hunting Bulletin - 29 June 2023

Mark and his springer spaniel Toby are all eyes as a few pairs come in early evening (Credit Hamish Carnachan) 

Last Chance To Bag Some Ducks This  Weekend      

The main waterfowl season closes this weekend (Sunday) so make sure you get into it and bag some ducks while you can.

We've got great conditions to round out the season too!

A really powerful system down in the sub Antarctic is pushing strong winds onto the lower North Island.

The first really good westerly flow for the season is forecast so it should move ducks around and prevent them from settling on the big water. 

This is the final Game Bird Bulletin - thanks for reading and your feedback and photos. 

Don't pack the gun away after this weekend though - there are plenty of upland game opportunities still available as well as the venerable pooks. 

You can hunt for pheasant, quail and pukeko right through to August 27, 2023.    

Grab your buddy a licence and get them out for the final hit out this weekend.   

Here's the outlook for this weekend...

Weekend Weather Outlook 

The brighter the colour the stronger the wind (Credit: Windy.com)

Not much rain forecast for this weekend but we've got strong variable winds for most of the weekend. 

The blow is supposed to move around the west to nor-west quadrant of the compass from tomorrow onwards, with some southerly wind shifts thrown in for good measure.

The airstream over the entire country is going to be very very cold too.

Combined with the strong winds, the plummeting temperatures will force the ducks to move around even more as they look for food and energy to keep warm.            

Saturday mid-morning will see the winds peak, so if you want the best of the conditions make sure you're in position to meet the flights kicked up when the front hits. 

We couldn't really ask for better to round out the season.    

Click here for the latest weather updates from Metservice, or visit the Windy website to track conditions coming our way.

Family Hunting Photo Comp

Congratulations to Derek Mitchell who has won the family photo comp.  

The winning entry for our photo competition this season. 

Derek takes out the $200 worth of Hunting & Fishing NZ clothing.

Thanks again to Greg and the team at Wairarapa Hunting & Fishing in Masterton for supporting the competition this season.

We look forward to bringing the competition back next season and seeing more of your great family hunting pics. 

Update On Our Campaign For the Future Of Fishing And Hunting  

There's been significant progress in our mission to safeguard the future of fishing and hunting in New Zealand. 

Parliament’s Environment Select Committee has reported back on the planned Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE), which we believe would have had significant implications for the future of fishing and hunting in New Zealand and the role of Fish & Game.

Over the past few weeks, almost 12,000 people visited Fish & Game’s ‘Our Future’ website and nearly 3500 Kiwis sent emails outlining their concerns to the Government and MPs.

Following this public outcry and the hard work of the Fish & Game team, the select committee has now recommended changes to the proposed law.

Read the latest here. 

Still Plenty Of Hunting On Offer

Pukeko are murder on ducklings and other waterfowl – take time to target a few this season (Credit: Hamish Carnachan)

In the Wellington region hunters have many weeks after the end of the duck hunting season to target pukeko.

Get a team together and hold pukeko drives where the birds are coming into conflict with landowners. 

Alternatively, you can jump shot them around the margins wetlands or drains, making them a great target species to teach novices how to shoot birds on the wing.

We encourage you to make the most of your game licence by getting a group together to go pukeko hunting – you’ll be surprised what challenging and rewarding shooting they offers, and breasted out they make great eating too!

Don't forget that like pukeko, you can also target upland game species through to August 27, 2023 too. That's weeks of hunting still on offer!  

If you'd like information on the pheasant and quail hunting opportunities available in our region, get in touch with the office and we'll point you at some places to go.    

Wing Spinner Placement - Top Tip 

Placement of your spinning wing decoy relative to your shooting position is critical (Credit: Hamish Carnachan)

We've had a few chats with hunters in recent weeks about the pros and cons of spinning week decoys. 

Many have noted that while they bring ducks in from miles away, the birds are wary of spinners at this of the season. 

They're finding the ducks will investigate but remain well clear, or at times flare away and refuse to decoy in. 

We came across some great advice from the team at Meat Eater. 

Their rule of thumb is to put the motion decoy 5 to 10 metres upwind of your ideal landing zone. 

The reason being that most of the time when ducks get close to a downwind spinner they will flare away and start their landing approach again. 

Positioning the spinning wing decoy upwind, therefore, brings the birds closer into range.    

Firearms Registry- Heads Up For Hunters

Keep Those Band Details Coming - Win A $500 Voucher

Hunters are welcome to keep the bands from the birds they harvest - Fish & Game just needs info about where and when they were shot (Credit: Hamish Carnachan).  

Send your band details in and you'll automatically go into the draw for one of two $500 Hunting & Fishing vouchers from Simon and the team at Manawatu Hunting & Fishing.    

Got a band to be registered, ring the free phone number 0800 BIRD BAND (0800-247322).

Alternatively there's a ready-made form to fill out on the Fish & Game website here (Note: prizes may vary from what is advertised on the website).

Noticeboard

• Access to Lake Omanu has been restricted this year for all recreational users. Any hunters looking to hunt Lake Omanu this season will need to get in touch with the office for access permissions to check availability of stands after Kings Birthday Weekend. Contacted us on 06 359 0409 or via email.  
  
• A note to hunters using the JK Donald Block in Wairarapa: Access is restricted to quads/ATVs only. The track is currently too wet for 4WDs. Please do not park on Paula Gillett's property (without her express permission) or block access ways.
• Hunters wishing to access the JK Donald block are reminded they must have an access sticker, and follow the conditions of entry. Please ask for details through the Wellington Fish & Game office.        

​*This report was accurate at time of writing. For your safety, please ensure you check the latest weather information before you head out hunting.