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ducks
shooting
2009/04: Should Victoria allow duck shooting in 2009?<BR>
2009/04: Should Victoria allow duck shooting in 2009?
What they said... 'With the looming disastrous impact of global warming it is imperative that we look to the future and protect our native waterbirds'
Laurie Levy, campaign director of the Victorian Coalition Against Duck Shooting
'A well-administered duck hunting season is both environmental sustainable and economically desirable for regional Victoria'
Peter Hall, the Victorian National's former spokesperson for the Environment and Natural Resources
The issue at a glance
On February 4, 2009, the Victorian Government announced that the 2009 duck hunting season would run for 49 days, commencing on March 21, and would include the closure of some key wetlands.
The announcement of a duck hunting season was met with satisfaction by shooters' groups, despite the fact that it will be significantly shorter than usual. There was no duck hunting season last year or the year before due to drought conditions and decreased bird numbers.
The Environment and Climate Change Minister, Gavin Jennings, has stated that there is evidence to suggest that despite poor wetland conditions in Victoria, bird populations have improved because of rain in northern Australia.
Animal welfare groups, such as the Victorian Coalition Against Duck Shooting, have claimed that the Government has ignored recommendations from bird life experts that the season not go ahead and has acted in accord with the views of a committee constituted to support the duck hunters' lobby.
Background
Duck hunting legislation in Australia:
ACT - The ACT is a wildlife refuge and all native waterfowl are protected.
New South Wales - Recreational duck hunting was banned in 1995. Shooting is still permitted for ducks that cause, or have the potential to cause, damage to crops.
The Northern Territory - Recreational duck hunting is permitted during the duck hunting season.
Queensland - A permanent recreational duck hunting ban was imposed in 2006.
South Australia - Recreational duck hunting is permitted is permitted during the duck hunting season.
Tasmania - Recreational duck hunting is permitted during the duck hunting season.
Victoria - Recreational duck hunting is permitted during the duck hunting season.
Western Australia - Recreational duck hunting was banned in 1990. Shooting is still permitted on properties where ducks are causing damage to dams or waterways.
There are ten different species of native duck that can be hunted in Australia, although only two of these species (Pacific black duck and grey teal) can be shot in every state where duck hunting is still permitted. Each state sets its own laws to control which species can be shot and which species are protected, as well as setting limits (known as bag limits) on the maximum number of birds that can be shot and retrieved by a single hunter on any one day.
An annual survey of duck populations in Eastern Australia is carried out jointly by Victoria, SA and CSIRO Wildlife and Ecology. The survey assess the possible impact of hunters and the effects of available wetland habitat on waterbird populations. The results of this survey are used to assess which species will be included in the open season and what bag limits will be set.
The Victorian Coalition Against Duck Shooting's Internet site can be found at http://www.duck.org.au/ The opening page of the site currently contains the organisation's media release in response to the Victorian Government's announcement that there would be a 2009 duck season. The release is highly critical of the decision and gives a number of reasons as to why it is inappropriate.
The Royal Australian Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has conducted a long-term campaign against duck shooting. The section of the site in which they outline the Society's arguments against duck hunting can be found at http://rspca.org.au/campaign/duck.asp
The RSPCA's specific response to the Victorian Government's decision can be found at http://www.rspcavic.org/campaigns_news/campaigns_duck_hunting.htm
An article published in The Weekly Times on February 19, 2009, suggests the impact the Victorian bush fires may have on duck hunters behaviour. The article is titled, 'Fires alter duck hunting mood' and it was written by Ross Williams. The full text of the article can be found at http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2009/02/19/53825_shooting.html
Arguments against duck shooting in Victoria
1. Duck numbers are in significant decline
Recent surveys have indicated a serious decline in Victorian duck numbers. In 2008, Professor Richard Kingsford, of the University of New South Wales, undertook a national aerial waterbirds survey, with three light aircraft criss-crossing the country mostly at tree-top level. The survey revealed major declines in duck numbers in Victoria. It indicated that Victoria's duck numbers had declined more than 70 per cent in the past 25 years, and by a highly significant 60 per cent between 2007 and 2008.
It has been suggested that the impact of drought and global warning has contributed to this decline in duck numbers. The campaign director of the Coalition Against Duck Shooting stated in a media release, 'Ornithologists predict it will take many years of flooding for waterbird numbers to return. With the looming disastrous impact of global warming it is imperative that we look to the future and protect our native waterbirds. Since their numbers have declined by 82% across eastern Australia over the last 25 years, it is evident they will need all the help they can get to survive into the future...
Victorian water levels were at an all-time low at the start of 2009 with most wetlands in the state still dry due to the on-going 12 year drought. The few wetlands that still hold water in Gippsland are acting as refuges for the low numbers of native waterbirds in this state and must be protected from duck shooters.'
Similar problems have been reported in South Australia. In a report broadcast on the ABC on June 4, 2008, it was stated, 'South Australia's Environment department says cancellation of the duck hunting season has done little to improve numbers of the declining species. The season usually ends at this time of year, but the past two have been cancelled because of the drought's impact on duck breeding.
Resource protection officer Tim Fraser [stated] ... significant rain would be needed for a hunting season to go ahead later in the year.'
Mr Fraser noted, 'To get ducks to breed and to get big movements of ducks into South Australia we're going to need some massive rains or indeed very, very significant flow in the River Murray which is going to then put water out onto the flood plain.'
The Victorian branch of the RSPCA has issued a media release stating, 'RSPCA Victoria is appalled by the Brumby government's decision to allow the 2009 duck shooting season to commence. For the past two years the season has been cancelled due to low waterbird numbers and drought. Victoria is still obviously in a drought, so why has this changed?'
2. Duck shooting involves significant cruelty
It has been claimed that duck hunting is a cruel sport as many birds are not killed outright and thus have to endure the pain and fear of being wounded before they are either retrieved alive by the shooter and then killed or die more slowly, without being retrieved.
The campaign director of the Victorian Coalition Against Duck Shooting, Laurie Levy, stated in a media release, 'The Victorian Government has now acknowledged wounding rates are far too high, with one in four birds wounded, Premier John Brumby has still called a duck season knowing full well that according to FGA figures, around 75,000 birds will be wounded.'
A similar point was made in an editorial published in The Age on February 12, 2009, it was stated, 'The Age opposes duck hunting because of the losses to rare species and the cruelty to the one-in-four ducks that are wounded and not retrieved.'
Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania has recently issued a similar statement claiming, 'Shooters may only use shotguns to shoot at ducks. Each shot sends a spray of pellets towards the target, the spray disperses and pellets hitting the targeted duck may kill it. Most often they only wound it. If badly injured it will fall suddenly and land heavily in the water, if the injury is lesser it may fly on for some distance. Statistics show that shooters nearly always need multiple shots to kill outright, up to ten shots, or they may wring the birds neck. For every duck killed and retrieved, another may escape wounded to die later from injuries, or starvation.'
The RSPCA's Internet site similarly states, 'Some ...ducks will be killed outright. Some will be wounded, brought down and killed on retrieval. Many others will be crippled or wounded and will die within a few hours or days. Some will suffer prolonged pain before they die.
Duck shooting is not humane. Tens of thousands of ducks receive horrific injuries every year during the hunting season. The RSPCA opposes the recreational hunting of ducks because of the high level of cruelty involved...
An estimate of wounding rates has been calculated using a computer model of which simulated the effects of a hunter shooting at a duck...
The study analysed hunters' hit rates to determine the level of wounding and calculated that a shooter who takes on average 6 shots to kill a bird (a conservative estimate compared to published studies) would wound between 60 and 120 ducks for every 100 bagged. Overall the study concluded that most competent shooters will wound at least one duck for every duck bagged.
What is the rate of crippling and wounding caused by duck shooting? Studies indicate that between 6.6 and 10 ducks are crippled or wounded for every 10 ducks that are bagged (shot and retrieved by the hunter).'
Animals Australia has also noted that other waterbirds can be harmed by ingesting the lead pellets that are left behind in lakes, rivers and wetlands. The orgaisation's Internet site states, 'Birds who ingest spent lead shot may endure prolonged suffering before death. Waterbirds, often bottom-feeding species, can develop lead poisoning after ingesting just one lead shot, usually left after duck shooting. The ingested lead shot is trapped in the gizzard then passes through the
gastro-intestinal tract. The lead from the eroded shot is absorbed and deposited in the tissues. The use of lead shot has now been banned in each State, but the ban is not well policed. Despite the bans, tonnes of lead still remain in the environment from past shooting as lead does not break down.'
3. The decision to reintroduce duck shooting in Victoria is politically motivated
It has been suggested that the Brumby Government's decision to reintroduce duck shooting has been taken for political motives.
In an article published in The Age on February 5, 2009, stated, 'A source within the Department of Sustainability and Environment said the Government had used illogical reasons to justify allowing the season to go ahead. These included recent heavy rains in Queensland and NSW boosting the likelihood of waterbird breeding - but ducklings born in northern states would be too young to fly to Victoria for the season, which will run from March 21 to May 8.' The same source was then quoted as saying, 'We've got a season purely for political reasons contrary to any conservation reasons.'
The Age in an editorial published on February 12, 2009, claimed that the decision to allow a duck hunting season in Victoria in 2009 was made on the recommendation of a committee dominated by hunting interests. The editorial further claimed that that the Victorian government was seeking to curry favour with country electorates where Labor was not popular. The editorial stated, 'Environment Minister Gavin Jennings cited the view of the Hunting Advisory Committee and duck surveys of the eastern states in declaring a 49-day season from 21 March. Hunting groups dominate the committee, which, as Mr Jennings notes in the Victorian Hunting Guide, "continues to represent the hunting community". It is chaired by Bill McGrath, a veteran of the National Party, which has made an issue of duck hunting in seats where Labor is vulnerable.'
Anti-duck shooting campaigner Laurie Levy has also said he believed the decision had been forced on Mr Jennings by Premier John Brumby, who is seeking to win back support in country Victoria, undermined by unpopular decisions such as the north-south pipeline.
4. Duck shooting has a major impact on duck numbers and regulations cannot offer sufficient protection
It has been suggested that the number of ducks typically shot by hunters during duck season puts unsustainable pressure on duck populations.
The campaign director of the Coalition Against Duck Shooting stated in a media release, 'Field and Game Australia (FGA) make the claim they have minimal impact on waterbird numbers, yet their own hunt survey data shows that in fact they had maximum impact with over 300,000 birds shot in 2006. This far exceeded the 183,000 waterbirds counted by the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) on Victorian wetlands in the lead up to the start of the 2006 season.The Brumby government fails to acknowledge the serious threat recreational duck shooting poses to native waterbird populations in Victoria.'
It has further been claimed that none of the measures put in place to protect threatened species is adequate. Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania has recently issued a statement noting, 'Current target species are black ducks, chestnut teal, grey teal, mountain ducks and wood ducks, and bag limits are specified. BUT other species, some protected, share these habitats and are at risk of accidental or deliberate shooting. Amongst these: blue winged shoveler, white-eyed duck, musk duck, freckled duck, pink eared duck, blue billed duck and plumed tree duck. We are assured that shooters are required to sit a wildlife identification test to ensure there is NO mistake in identifying target ducks, but whilst the pass rate is not required to be 100% and whilst every season turns up taking of non-target species, exceeding of bag limits and unlicensed shooting we can see that not all gun handlers do or can follow the rules.'
After monitoring the 1994 Victorian duck season, RSPCA inspectors observed, 'It is not possible for relevant government departments or the police to enforce existing legislation relating to duck shooting. There were vast areas of the state where shooting goes on without inspection. Shooting commenced before conditions allowed accurate identification of species. In unmonitored areas shooting commenced up to 40 minutes before the allotted time. Many shots were fired at extreme range where accurate species identification and the chance of a clean kill were highly unlikely. Observations were made of ducks being wounded but not brought down. A number of shooters were observed to continue shooting rather than following-up and recovering downed birds. An estimated 95% of shots fired did not meet their target and would have been deposited in the water and on dry land. In states where lead shot is still used this represents a serious pollution risk. Other species of birds were seen to be frightened or distressed by the shooting. Birds can become exhausted after flying around for hours and have difficulty maintaining height.'
Animals Australia has also noted, 'Many non-game birds have been retrieved from the wetlands during duck season, including legally protected species such as the rare and endangered Freckled Duck. Although Waterfowl Identification Test (WIT) has been introduced in Victoria, ... Tasmania and South Australia, it is a once-only test, and some shooters fire before they have identified the species they are aiming at. Although not easily mistaken for game birds, "protected" species such as swan, ibis, spoonbill, cormorant and long-billed corella, are sometimes shot.'
5. A majority of Victorians are opposed to duck shooting and most Australian states have banned it
The campaign director of the Coalition Against Duck Shooting stated in a media release, 'Victorians want this brutal and unnecessary activity stopped. While duck shooters have a friend in the Brumby government, the rest of the Victorian public will condemn this decision. An October 2007 Morgan research poll showed that 75% of Victorians want recreational duck shooting banned. However, once informed that waterbird numbers across eastern Australia since 1983 have declined by 82%, that one in four birds are wounded and that three states have already banned the activity, the percentage jumped to an overwhelming 87%.'
Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania has recently issued a statement noting, 'This may not be your kind of sport - it's not the way most Australians think of sport. The ACT has never considered this sport, it has never been legal there. It's not the way WA thinks of sport - it was banned there in 1990. Nor is it the way NSW thinks of sport, it was banned there in 1995. Queensland declared it a non-sport when they announced their permanent ban on November 1st 2006. SA and Victoria cancelled both the 2007 and 2008 seasons.'
Arguments in favour of duck shooting in Victoria
1. Many Victorian duck species are not in decline and other threats are more significant than hunting
It has been claimed that survey work indicates that a number of duck species are not showing reduced numbers. It is suggested that the wood duck is now in greater numbers than at the time of white settlement. Wood duck are claimed to have adapted particularly well to the agricultural practises that have seen increased areas of pasture and irrigation. They now present as pests in many rural and urban area of Australia and are prolific along river and creek systems. Race and Golf course curators in particular have severe problems with these birds.
The South Australian Department of Conservation has recognised this problem and removed the bag limit on the species during the prescribed hunting season. In Tasmania, wood duck were protected until 2003 when they were added to the Game list and are now included in the hunters bag. This was a result of monitoring by the wildlife agencies that showed that numbers had increased significantly and were now creating problems for land managers by impacting on pastures, rice crops, water quality of farm dams and other storage impoundments
It has also been claimed that any reduction in duck numbers is temporary and largely dependent on climate conditions. With rains, is is argued, duck numbers will return to normal levels. This situation has been described in South Australia. Resource protection officer Tim Fraser has stated, 'In South Australia the duck population is very low. What people have to realise is that the situation can change dramatically and duck breeding is triggered by rising water. If the water keeps rising - and let's hope it does - ducks just keep breeding back to back, so the numbers can bounce back up very quickly.'
Dr Richard Kingsford of the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service has studied the decline of birds in wetlands for many years, said that the evidence was equivocal.
In February 2000, Dr Kingsford stated, 'Duck hunting is not a major conservation issue. It may have an impact on a local area, but overall, migration dilutes out any of these effects. The real culprit is things like habitat loss due to diversion of rivers.'
Also in February 2000, The Sporting Shooters' Association of Australia accused the RSPCA of being 'short on facts and understanding about ducks and wetland habitat, and long on blatant emotionalism'.
Mr Sebastian Ziccone, Victorian Branch President of the Sporting Shooters' Association stated, 'About sixty percent of the duck population dies every year irrespective of the activities of hunters.'
2. Victorian duck hunting is regulated so as to ensure duck populations are not threatened
In Victoria, recreational duck hunting is highly regulated in order to ensure that threatened species are not put at risk through duck hunting. The length of the hunting season is controlled, specific areas are declared non-hunting regions, bag limits are put in place and particular species are protected from being shot.
Recreational duck hunting in Victoria is controlled under the provisions of the Wildlife Act 1975 and a normal season starts on the third Saturday in March until the second Monday in June each year. This is in place to minimise the impact on duck populations. Further, DSE has management measures in place to restrict or close the season in accordance with environmental conditions and provide for sustainable harvest. In response to reduced waterfowl populations and habitat, resulting from continuing dry conditions the Government has modified the duck season by reducing season lengths, bag limits and the species available for hunting in ten out of the last thirteen duck seasons. The 2007 season was cancelled, as were the1995 and 2003 seasons.
Environment and Climate Change Minister Gavin Jennings has announced that the duck season in Victoria for 2009 would run for only 49 days - from Saturday March 21 to Friday May 8. The media release indicated that this will be the shortest, most restricted duck season ever declared for Victoria to ensure that duck numbers remain sustainable into the future. The Minister further stated, 'There will be an extensive survey of wetlands across the State at the end of this month to determine which sites are unsuitable for inclusion in the season.
Many of our wetlands are already dry and will not be available for hunting. Other areas will be identified through the summer waterfowl count as not being appropriate sites because they contain significant numbers of fragile species... Following [the] waterfowl count ... a number of key wetlands are likely to be closed because they will provide refuges for breeding. These and other restrictions form part of the safeguards against over-harvesting of duck numbers.'
To further ensure duck populations are not adversely affected, recreational shooters will be restricted to a maximum bag limit of five game ducks of which at least three must be Wood Duck, with a total ban on the taking of Blue Wing Shoveller, Pink Ear and Hard Head. In addition, duck hunters will be subject to a range of strong penalties up to $2685 for breaching any one of the conditions.
3. Duck hunters help to preserve wetland environments
It has been claimed that duck hunters play an important part in the preservation and management of wetland environments. In addition to assisting in the control of pest species, the fees paid by duck shooters are used to help manage these areas. Shooters also act as a significant pressure group ensuring governments continue to monitor and preserve the health of rivers, lakes and wetlands.
The 1998 Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee report into the commercial use of wildlife pointed out that apart from helping to
control destructive feral pests, pressure from hunters and their representative organisations helped to ensure that land was set aside for conservation. At the same
time, hunting makes an important financial contribution to preservation efforts across Australia, with the money raised from licenses and fees aiding in the maintenance of vital natural habitats.
According to Dr David Carter, game license fees have raised more than $20 million in Victoria alone since 1958, with the funds going towards the purchase of wetland areas for inclusion in public game reserves. This figure is said by some to be a conservative estimate of the funding from hunters being directed to habitat conservation and the economy.
In 2007, the Global Gun Site noted, 'Game licence fees in Victoria have raised over $20 million since 1958 and have been used to purchase wetlands for inclusion in public game reserves. Duck hunters pay $120,000 a year to South Australia's Wildlife Conservation Fund. A similar amount is paid by shooters in NSW for licenses to hunt ducks which are classed as pests on the ricefields. About $70,000 of this money goes to research. Apart from the licence fees, duck hunters supply their own voluntary labour, firearms, ammunition and transport to assist with the management of damage by waterfowl to the rice industry which is worth $600 million annually'
In an article published in The Victorian Shooter in December, 2005, it was noted, 'In the last century, freshwater wetlands have come under threat throughout the world for two main reasons: they are amongst the most fertile places in any landscape,and they have few uses for people while they are wet. Recreational hunting appears to have negligible effects on the overall populations of game birds. However, remove that avenue to hunt
and further draining of wetlands will harm far more than just game birds.
It is interesting to note that the 1998 Report of the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee, on Commercial Utilisation of Australian native Wildlife stated that:"...hunting has considerable potential to assist with conservation objectives. Ironically, this is often so for areas of land which are perceived to have little other economic value (such as swamps and wetlands). It also has the potential to contribute wealth, through big game hunting activities, to local communities which may have little other opportunity to derive income from their land and the wildlife inhabiting it."
4. Duck hunting makes an important contribution to rural economies
It has been claimed that duck shooters make significant contributions to rural economies. They are a substantial market which has to be supplied with food, camping equipment, boating equipment, hunting equipment (including ammunition), fuel and often accommodation. In Victoria, expenditure associated with duck hunting was estimated by a department survey in1995 at $29.35 million per year. It would be considerably more than that now.
The Victorian National Party has supported the Victorian Government's decision to allow duck hunting this year. Party leader Peter Ryan has the sport has economic benefits for regional towns, with many city-based shooters visiting for the season.
Commenting in August, 2007, the Nationals spokesman for Natural Resources, Peter Hall, stated, 'A well-administered duck hunting season is both environmental sustainable and economically desirable for regional Victoria. The hunters make a contribution to the regional economy and there is a strong tradition in many families that should be allowed to continue in the future...
The Labor Government's own estimates put the value of duck hunting and other game hunting at $50 million per year to the regional economy with 33,000 licensed game hunters in Victoria participating in the sport.'
It has further been argued that long periods of drought have damaged rural economies and that these economies therefore should not be denied the economic benefits that duck hunting can supply.
In December, 2007, Noel Jackson, a letter writer to The Age noted, 'Duck shooting is worth an estimated $50 million to the Victorian economy each year. That equates to jobs and family livelihoods.'
5. Some duck species damage crops
It has been noted that some species, especially wood duck, cause crop damage. In Victoria certain species of animal judged to damage crops can legally be shot under an Authority to Control Wildlife.
In a media statement released on February 4, 2009, Environment and Climate Change Minister Gavin Jennings noted, 'The specific bag limit for wood ducks is partially due to the fact that the species is subject to Authorities to Control Wildlife - permits available to landholders to protect crops and dams.
Applications to the DSE from farmers to control wood ducks have increased significantly, almost doubling since 2005 and increasing by more than 20 per cent compared to the previous year. These factors seem to indicate a growing numbers of wood ducks in Victoria.'
The Minister has further stated, 'Wood ducks feed on pasture and are therefore more likely to be found on farmland than in wetland systems and all duck hunters must ensure they seek the permission of land owners before entering private property.'
That ducks can be a pest is a point made by a number of contributors to The Age's blog sites. One contributor observed, 'Ducks are a pest where I live. They do their business everywhere and make the biggest mess staining pavers and furniture. As long as their numbers justify the appropriate hunting period I don't have a problem with it.'
A pest control manufacturer, Bird Gard, has noted, ' Wood ducks are found throughout all of the eastern and western coasts of Australia, the wood duck is a common sight to most rural people. It is not found in the dry interior or Northern Territory.
Although a swimmer, the wood duck is usually found grazing on land. It prefers lightly timbered country near water. It has benefited greatly from small acreage blocks each with a dam and grazing.
Wood ducks are less nomadic than most other species and will remain at the same camp, flying out to feed on green grass shoots and herbage, in the same area until the food is exhausted. Then they'll move to a new feeding area.
Wood ducks can be a major pest in rice fields, lucerne, young cereal and vegetable crops. They normally are only a pest while the crop is young, short and succulent.'
Further implications
It would appear that duck hunting's days may well be numbered in both South Australia and Victoria. These are the only remaining mainland states in which recreational duck shooting is still legal. Further, both these states have cancelled their duck hunting seasons in recent years in response to drought conditions and reduced bird numbers.
The improved conditions in New South Wales has been used to support the declaration of a limited duck hunting season in Victoria this year. The argument being that if conditions are better for the birds in part of their territory, in areas where they are able to breed, then it should be possible to hunt them in Victoria without unduly affecting their numbers.
What casts doubt on this argument is that duck hunting has been banned in New South Wales since 1995.
It would further appear that general concern about global warming, drought and the diminished state of the major waterways and wetlands in southeastern Australia is likely to reduce popular support for duck hunting. Current surveys already indicate that more than 80% of Victorians are opposed to duck hunting.
It has been suggested that part of the reason for the Victorian Government allowing a duck hunting season this year is to regain political support in regional electorates. However, it may be that even in regional Victoria attitudes are changing. In the aftermath of the Victorian bush fires, one hunter was reported expressing concern about duck numbers. 'I want to see what the duck numbers look like with my own eyes. Then I'll think about whether I want to shoot any this year.'
