At Lake Buloke, in north-western Victoria, a small smattering of gunfire punctuated the opening hour of what could be the state’s last duck-hunting season.
About 30 animal rights activists outnumbered fewer than 10 shooters, as both groups waited for 8am to arrive and mark the official start of the season.
The hunters and activists suspect this could be the last season for the activity. In February, the Andrews government announced a shortened season and a parliamentary inquiry to examine the future of duck hunting.
It followed increasing pressure on the government from environmentalists and activists, who are pushing for a ban due to animal welfare and sustainability concerns, particularly after the 2019 bushfires decimated wildlife numbers. But hunters argue they have a right to continue what they view as a cultural tradition.
Veteran anti-duck protester Laurie Levy is buoyed up by the low numbers of hunters at the site, and says sustained pressure from activists has helped shift public sentiment on duck shooting.
“That image of kindness and compassion will always be supported over an act of violence in the hearts of the public,” he says.
Levy, who leads the coalition against duck shooting, estimates that in the mid-1980s – when he began campaigning against the activity – 10,000 hunters would surround Lake Buloke alone on the season’s opening day.
“It was a frightening place to be,” he says.
“Birds were falling out of the sky everywhere.”
There were about 11,500 people across the entire state who took part in last year’s duck hunting season according to the game management authority.
Nearby, at Wooroonook Lakes, 76-year-old Barry Jane is plucking feathers from three wood ducks and a green-winged teal he has shot. He’s planning to cook them in the ground over coals and eat them for dinner.
Jane, born and raised in nearby Charlton, has hunted ducks since he was a teenager and competed in sporting clay competitions overseas. But he says the government’s tightened restrictions have contributed to reduced hunter numbers.
“We’re not sportsmen – we don’t shoot ducks for sport. We shoot ducks to eat,” he says.
Jane says he expects an uproar from the hunting community if the government imposes a ban.
Despite opposition from activists, hunters have previously argued the season should go ahead this year because wetter than expected weather had created ideal breeding conditions.
But David Laird, the hunting development manager at the state’s sporting shooters association, says the reduced water level at Lake Buloke and the presence of protesters kept hunters away.
“Hunters aren’t interested in that conflict. They want to go and enjoy their cultural traditions,” he says.
Laird says the activity’s popularity has remained “fairly consistent” over a number of years.
Lisa Palma, the chief executive of Wildlife Victoria, says her team of veterinarians will be based at sites for the opening week of the season to treat injured ducks and conduct X-rays of bodies that have been illegally left behind.
“Just one firearm can do a lot of damage,” she says.
Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania are the only Australian jurisdictions where duck shooting is legal, during set time frames announced by the state governments each year.
In Victoria, this year’s season will run for just five weeks, until 30 May. Last year, the season was just under three months. Hunters are restricted to four birds a day and prohibited from shooting the blue-winged shoveler and hardhead ducks – both threatened species – due to declining populations.
But on Wednesday morning, Wildlife Victoria retrieved two shoveler ducks and one hardhead species from Wooroonook Lakes.
The fate of duck hunting seasons rests with the parliamentary inquiry, which will probe the activity’s environment, social and economic impacts. Public hearings will be held as part of the inquiry, which is due to hand down a final report by 31 August.
Members of the inquiry travelled to Lake Connewarre, near Geelong, on Wednesday morning to observe the beginning of the season.
Several Labor MPs, including cabinet ministers Lizzie Blandthorn and Ingrid Stitt, have publicly backed calls to end duck shooting.
In response to the shortened season, the state opposition accused the Andrews government of waging a “stealth shutdown of hunting” in an attempt to win votes in the city.
