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Quiet Start To Duck Season Across Victoria

It was an uneventful start to the 2006 Victorian duck season, with the majority of hunters behaving responsibly.

By news@gippsland - 20th March 2006 - Back to News

Wildlife Officers detected isolated incidents of non-game birds being shot and scattered instances of shots being fired before the season opened, but on the whole there were very few problems.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment’s (DSE’s) Acting Manager, Flora & Fauna Utilisation, Simon Toop, said "Overall, hunter behaviour has been good, with only a few reports of people shooting before the official opening time."

"There were seven offences for hunting from a boat under power and the same number for using lead shot," he said.

"We have four reports of non-game birds being shot, including three Freckled Duck" Mr Toop said.

"These are breaches of game regulations and our officers will be taking action against any hunters found breaking the laws".

"It is important that hunters stick to the official starting times and ensure proper identification of birds."

Hunting areas are being patrolled by enforcement officers from the Department of Sustainability and Environment and Parks Victoria, with assistance from Victoria Police.

Protesters centred their activities this morning on Lake Murphy near Kerang, but no serious clashes with hunters were reported. There were 40 infringement notices issued to protesters, mostly for illegally entering into restricted wetlands.

"The average bag across the State was about two birds, with some hunters doing better in some areas" said Mr Toop.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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