Hunter (4) and Spencer Pratt (6)
A mixed bag of weather conditions equated to a mixed bag of results nationwide as game bird season opened on May 3, but it was good news for Neil Pratt.
Neil Pratt, right, with his son, Michael
“We were just north of Ōtorohanga on the Waipa River,” the Pirongia hunter said. “We were on a flight path so we were off to a good start and managed to get our limits, of paradise and mallard ducks, on the Saturday and almost on the Sunday too.”
This year’s opening day saw a fifth consecutive generation of the Pratt family take part. Although Michael’s children – the aptly named Hunter, 4, and Spencer Pratt, 6 – were too young to shoot, they earned their keep by retrieving birds.
A lack of water in fields and ponds encouraged ducks to remain close to the river, Neil said.
“The weather was clear with a nice southerly breeze that kept stirring the ducks up and kept them moving. The ducks were staying on the path of the river, so we saw traffic going up and down the river all day.”
A reduction of hunters on day two was evidence of a successful day one, day one successes the Te Kūiti Cambridge Trap Shooters Club president said.
“There was a lot of people out shooting in the area on the Saturday but not quite as many on Sunday. Obviously some people had a big effort then decided not to go back out.”
Michael Pratt with a Canada goose
Michael’s sons Hunter (4) and Spencer Pratt (6)
