Got back to night from Pio pio,we shot a heap of birds and few rabbits,turkeys,magpies,goats. Here is Holly doing what she does best. Me with some of last nights birds. I did not take a lot of photos as i was busy trying to get the shoot on video.

My goodness, James .. but that is beautiful country that you hunt in !! Wow !! And those are Paradise Ducks .. Hmmmm... Might just be named after the scenery ,,,

Here are two parries that have not been shot,the hen is the one with the white head.

What breed is Holly? She looks like a Springer.

quote:

Originally posted by scruffy:
My goodness, James .. but that is beautiful country that you hunt in !! Wow !! And those are Paradise Ducks .. Hmmmm... Might just be named after the scenery ,,,

Your not wrong there mate, New Zealand is Godzone Country!

quote:

Originally posted by Wooly ESS:
What breed is Holly? She looks like a Springer.

Funny that she looks like a GWP to me.

Looks like a GWP to me also.

James, check out the short video of my ground squirrel shooting with my brother, it's in my link here: https://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/5411043/m/580106934

Now that I look at the bristly hair around the snout, I think I agree with you. Perhaps TOP_PREDATOR will settle the debate for us.

She is a GWP,she is not my dog.Holly worked very hard all weekend,there was up to 10 dead birds on the pond at times.We have to use steel shot down here now over water so a dog is a must.

Thanks for the update, TOP_PREDATOR. We have to use steel shot in Canada as well.

What we don't get to do in Canada is wear shorts while duck hunting! The sloughs are frozen over for the last month and a half of the season.

Very nice.

This is a special season for Paradise Shelduck , to reduce the numbers for pest control. These birds gather in flocks - like a thousand or so at times - and eat huge amounts of pasture , and crap on much more . They have the potential to become a major agricultural pest because they like the modified pasture that farming has created .

Five ducks probably consume as much grass per day as one sheep , and coupled with the crapping aspect and theire ability to make a mudhole out of the smallest puddle , they are not a farmer-friendly species .

Size-wise they are between a mallard and a canada goose in size.

The normal duck season start first weekend in may . This season is for 2 weeks ( correct me if I am wrong ) now to try and keep the numbers static as these guys are rapid breeders. You dont find them all over NZ , but anyone who has hunted deer will tell you how effective the ducks warning system is as they fly up and down a valley you are in , honking alarms to anything else that is there .

They are pretty wary , if they have been hunted much , but decoy readily if not scared. They are fun to shoot...