Australia & New Zealand : Australia: Dawn patrol starts hunting season off with a bang
on 2009/9/1 16:45:49

THE EXPLOSIVE crack of shotguns have opened the start of the waterfowl hunting season as dozens of Territorians hit the wetlands before dawn.

About fifty cars went through the police checks for hunting licences at Harrison Dam, about 70km southeast of Darwin, before 6am.

The men and women - equipped with shotguns, ammunition and loads of adrenaline - have waited nine months for the season to start again.

"This is the first day that we're allowed to come here to shoot magpie geese or ducks," aviation coordinator Kelly Dalton, 35, said.

"I really enjoy the goose shooting - especially the early morning, waiting for the sun to come up. It's really quite peaceful.

"I enjoy the challenge and making sure that every shot counts."

The waterfowl hunting season has been extended to four months - ending on December 30 - after last season saw an above average nesting of magpie geese across the Territory.

An estimated of three million magpie geese are in the Territory - of which 200,000 animals are expected to be shot within the season.

Hunters are restricted to a bag limit of seven geese and seven ducks each day to keep the population numbers high.

The Environment Department introduced several new rules, including the ban of lead and zinc shot types and the removal of carcasses where possible.

Director of conservation and wildlife Brett Easton said the department would be out to enforce the rules.

"We're going to police it through education and just talking to people," he said.

"If we see cases where people are piling up carcasses for waste then we act on that. But in general I think the hunting community is very responsible."

Waterfowl hunting will be allowed in four Top End reserves, including Harrison Dam, Howard Springs hunting reserve, Lambells Lagoon and Shoal Bay.

Each hunter will have to provide a firearm licence and waterfowl hunting permit.

Aboriginal people can hunt on their traditional land without licences.

http://www.ntnews.com.au/artic...01/80911_ntnews.html

BASTARD why did you have to rub it in!

Its good to see they are going to get people to clean up. I used to take all my empty shells home to dispose of but I am guilty of leaving the carcasses around. If they are all removed (where will people dump them for a start?) thousands of kites will starve! Not to mention the pigs and dingoes