Thread: Proposed banning of lead shot in sub gauge shotguns report from Southland

Thanks Mike H for posting that info.
I have already posted elsewhere on this forum, but I recently read an article in "NZ Guns and Hunting" issue 132 - Sep/Oct 2012, written by Neil Hayes (QSM CEnv), which has some interesting theories on the demise of the North Island mallard. One theory is that the number of wounded ducks has increased under steel shot use, from around 7% to around 50%. That means we shoot a hell of a lot more ducks, before we recover our limit bag - especially those without a dog (and there are heaps of hunters in that boat). Won't take long to thin the mallard stocks when we shoot mostly young breeding birds, now that everyone has flappys out. They are suckers for flappy decoys, and many more are wounded and unrecovered using steel.