Hunters will again be permitted to shoot native birds in their wetland habitats following the South Australian Government Gazette’s listing yesterday of a three-month season from 20th March 2021 until 27th June 2021. Hunters will be allowed to kill a maximum of four native birds each, per day. No quail are permitted to be shot this season. 

The decision has been made despite recent polling that showed almost three quarters of South  Australians surveyed want duck-hunting stopped and would support their MP to push for a ban. The  survey also found most would not holiday in a place where duck shooters were present.

"We’re dismayed by this decision, as are all other members of the Treasures not Targets coalition,”  RSPCA SA’s Animal Welfare Advocate Dr Rebekah Eyers says. 

“Duck habitats and numbers have been declining for half a century and we still want to shoot them?  Surely South Australia, a State renown for its cultural richness and education, is better than that. 

“The government’s decision to allow this outdated, cruel activity flies in the face of survey findings and public opinion on duck-hunting and nature tourism. 

“The most recent DEW (South Australian Department for Environment and Water) survey recorded the third lowest abundance of ducks on record, with six of the eight species recorded having abundances  dramatically below the long-term averages.”  

Ecologists have warned that allowing hunting in poor seasons means breeding birds are shot, further  compounding the pressure on bird populations.

In addition to the DEW survey, the State Government refers to an annual survey conducted by University  of NSW when making decisions about duck hunting seasons. Since the 1980s, this waterbird survey has also found long-term population decline and diminishing habitat and breeding conditions.  

It also found that much of last year’s rainfall did not make it to the wetlands. This is significant because for mass breeding to occur, many waterbird species require floods to be of a certain size and duration. 

The UNSW survey’s Professor Richard Kingsford, head of the university’s Centre for Ecosystem Science,  blames several factors for the declining wetlands, including excessive dam construction and climate  change.

“Building dams doesn’t make more water,” Professor Kingsford says.

“An increase in the timing between breeding opportunities for some duck species could spell their  demise.” 

Duck hunters frequently defend their annual invasion of wetlands by claiming their presence in regional areas boosts local economies, but research suggests otherwise. 

“Tourism surveys recognise how lucrative avitourism/nature-tourism is for regional communities, and regions are increasingly tapping into it,” Dr Eyers says. 

“But almost three quarters of respondents in a recent South Australian poll said they would not visit areas if duck-shooters were present.” 

“In particular, many people don’t want their children exposed to the violence of duck hunting. 

“Seeing men in camouflage carrying guns through wildlife habitats is confronting, as is seeing wounded  birds flailing on the ground.” 

Community opposition to duck-hunting is growing. South Australian opponents recently held a ‘sit in’ in the lobby of DEW’s city offices. Across the border, a current advertising campaign run by community group Regional Victorians against Duck Hunting is also pushing for it to end.

Cruelty and suffering not on radar of decision-makers 

The Panel advising government on duck hunting operates under Terms of Reference that do not include animal welfare impacts (i.e. bird suffering). Every year the Environment Minister decides whether to declare a hunting season, the species to be shot and the number each shooter can kill per day.  

But Dr Eyers says the decision to allow shooting does not appear to be based on the science and evidence either (i.e. wetland conditions, waterbird survey numbers, breeding conditions and climate). 

“Besides ignoring bird suffering, it seems to ignore long-term population decline and the likelihood that  hunting during poor (breeding) conditions will reduce duck numbers even further,” she says.

Duck hunting is banned in New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia. The RSPCA opposes this activity due to the inevitable pain and distress it causes, not just to the birds targeted but also to non target animals traumatised by gunfire, or those shot accidentally.

Australian research estimates at least a quarter of all ducks shot are wounded, not killed outright. This is because shotguns spray up to a hundred pellets per shot (often at a group of birds), and injured birds can be hard to find.

Some wounded birds will drown, others will experience painfully slow deaths from  broken wings, fractures, shattered bills, infections and internal injuries that prevent them from feeding or escaping predators.

Unlike Victoria, a large proportion of duck-shooting in South Australia occurs on private land, making it less publicly visible and less likely to be monitored. During Victoria’s 2020 season, shooters were filmed: 

∙ shooting outside permitted times 

∙ failing to check if wounded birds were dead  

∙ continuing to fire at flying birds while wounded birds suffered nearby

A recent survey by Victoria’s regulator also found few hunters knew how to humanely kill wounded birds, as per code requirements. With a third of those shooting in South Australia (average season) being 

Victorian and no public data on regulatory monitoring in SA, the same non-compliance with regulation is likely to be occurring in SA.  

An estimated 180 million native birds (including waterbirds) perished during last year’s  bushfires. RSPCA South Australia, as part of the Treasures not Targets Coalition, urges the  State Government to urgently reconsider its decision to allow a 2021 duck hunting season. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION: https://www.rspcasa.org.au/issues/duck-shooting/