Thousands of eager duck hunters, from seasoned veterans to family groups, have turned out across the country at the start of the new game bird hunting season this morning.

Fish & Game officers says that early reports of some good hunting have been received from staff out in the field around the country.

Auckland/Waikato Fish & Game Chief Executive Ben Wilson says the Hauraki Plains shot well and better than expected, with cool cloudy conditions prevailing.

He says the opening was “pretty good” and ahead of last year’s.

“There were large numbers of ducks on the Hauraki Plains but fortunes were mixed in other parts of the region,” he said.

Further down the North Island, Fish & Game officers reported that one hunting party in Northern Wairarapa had acheived a couple of limit bags.

In the Manawatu Region it was cold and cloudy with some wind and hunters had “birds in hand” before 10am.

Down south, near Selwyn on the Canterbury Plains, a family group of four hunters were “quite happy” after bagging 50 ducks by 10 am.

The conditions were fine and calm which favours the birds, less than ideal, and there were reports of some hunters in Canterbury packing up early.

Meanwhile, along the Otago coast foggy conditions had made hunting conditions hard, according to staff.

On the West Coast, Fish & Game Officer Lee Crosswell said it was enjoyable morning for rangers to encounter such a “good keen bunch of hunters.”

Most hunters were managing at least a few birds, he added.

The conditions had been overcast with light northerly winds predicted to increase later in the afternoon with showers.

“The best hunting for the weekend is probably still to come with those changes in the weather,” he said.

Fish & Game Communications Manager Don Rood said it was encouraging that there were no early reports of any firearm-related or other incidents.

We can only hope this continues through the weekend and every last person with a shotgun takes complete and careful responsibility for their own and their mates’ safety.

Fish & Game, Police, the Mountain Safety Council and Water Safety Council had joined forces in the run up to the start of the season urging hunters to make safety their number one priority.

Mr Rood says that with around 40 thousand licenced game bird hunters in the field, “it’s crucial that every single hunter plays their part – and in particular checks their firing zone to make sure it’s safe before pulling the trigger.”

"It's about making sure that everyone enjoying the challenge of getting some wild game, and social side of duck hunting in the outdoors, comes back safely at the end of the day or weekend.”

He says that in many areas Fish & Game rangers have combined with police officers to check compliance with both hunting rules and regulations such as bag limits and firearm rules.

All hunters must carry both a game bird hunting licence and a firearm licence.

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