SPORTSMEN

Evening Post, Volume CI, Issue 92, 19 April 1921, Page 8

SPORTSMEN

IMPORTED AND NATIVE GAME

A GOOD SEASON.

At 6 o'clock on Monday morning, 2nd May, tho season open 6 for native and imported game. As a rule the seasonstarts on Ist May, but the Animals Protection Act does not allow the opening to be on a Sunday.

Australian and Californian quail, pheasants, and hares comprise our imported game. In many parts of the Wellington district this game is increasing; and this year there will bo more pheasants than usual, fov in addition to the natural increasej the Acclimatisation Society has liberated a hundred birds.

A variety in the class of sport is to be provided by permission being granted this year for the shooting or trapping of opossums. The period allotted for this class of game is fixed as from the Ist of June to the 30th June. The regulations governing the taking of opossums will be gazetted next week. Permission, it is understood, is to be given to licence-holders to capture or shoot opossums in any quantity. The license fee is £2 10s, but a royalty is payable in respect to each skm. It must be borne in mind that the Ikenso does not give the right of entry on private property. Most of the opossums are to be found on Crown land, so that the restriction mentioned should not greatly hamper sportsmen. In the month of June the fur of the opossum is supposed to be at its best.

Native game in the Wellington district consists of grey duck, teal, and black swan. ' Native pigeons are absolutely protected throughout the whole of the Dominion. Observation has shown that ducks are in fair numbers this year on lakes, lagoons, and river mouths.

The depr-stalking season opened on 24th March, in order that sportsmen might be given the benefit of the Easter holidays. So far as this district is concerned, the- date mentioned was considered rather early, and genuine stalking has only come off within the last week. Good heads have been obtained all over the district. There have been six heads taken at Paraparaumu. Two very fineheads were secured on the Ruamahanga watershed in Eketahuna County, and quite a large number of heads have been taken in the Wairarapa. All the returns, however, are not in yet. The best head secured so far was a 14-pointor from Paraparaumu—considered to be the best shown in these parts for the past five or six years—that is for quality, but not for number of points. Complete, information in respect to the result of the various expeditions can only be obtained after the taxidermist has done the mounting, .in about a fortnight or three weeks. Up to date, 128 licenses have been issued, and it is anticipated there will be a record number issued before the season terminates.

The fish mg" season, which closes on the 30th of this month, has been one of the beet for the last 15 years or more. Some 1300 licenses have been taken out, bringing in a revenue to the society of £1020. That is about the best return ever obtained from this source. Fishing has been excellent throughout this district— largely due to the systematic heavy stocking of the streams from year to year.