Thread: Turkeys upper South Island

Kia ora folks, I was turkey hunting with my break barrel on private property yesterday and only found out just before the hunt that the owner sometimes feeds the animals. So they were not wild and real easy to shoot which was disappointing. I am now looking for truely wild animals on the upper South Island if possible or further south. Can you point out general areas where to look for them? I could not find anything on the web.
Also, is it generally quite easy to hunt turkey here in NZ? I like the meat but I also like hunts to be challenging ;-)

We aint got "wild turkeys" here in NZ - theyre all descendants of domestic birds. Some properties make em "wild" by hoozling them up on 4 wheelers, or with a chopper. And some are reasonably wary having been shot at a few times. But these are not your wild, wary, hard to shoot gobblers found in the US.

Originally Posted by Husky1600

We aint got "wild turkeys" here in NZ - theyre all descendants of domestic birds. Some properties make em "wild" by hoozling them up on 4 wheelers, or with a chopper. And some are reasonably wary having been shot at a few times. But these are not your wild, wary, hard to shoot gobblers found in the US.

That's interesting, the turkeys I have come across have all been very stupid. Wondered what our American friends got out of hunting them.

If you want a challenging turkey shoot go after wild peacocks. Make turkeys look like pet lambs. And there's plenty around, at least in Northland and Auckland areas, not sure about the South. Farmers are usually glad to get rid of them.

I can't recall ever seeing feral turkeys here in Golden Bay (excluding some of the locals) or anywhere else I've been in the South Island.
I used to shoot a few for meat in the BOP when I lived there but it wasn't much of a challenge.

Same with feral peacocks. Maybe it's too cold for them to breed up like they do in the North Island.

Golden Bay has essentially no rabbits or magpies, and it can be hard to even find a possum after all the AHB and DOC operations over the years.
Plenty of hares on the dairy farms though.