Field & Game Australia responds to the announcement of a heavily modified 2019 Victorian Duck Season and calls for duck hunters to be compensated for the reduced season. Watch the video and read the full statement from FGA and the Government's announcement below.

The season is reduced from 12 to 9 weeks with four birds per day on opening weekend and five per day for the remainder of the season and no Blue-winged shoveler in the bag.

Field & Game Australia statement

We are disappointed by Minister Symes & Minister D’Ambrosio’s announcement of a heavily modified 2019 Victorian Duck Season.

Through the submission process Field & Game Australia advocated for a full bag of 10 birds per day and a full length season and provided ample scientific and empirical data to support our position.

We have seen no compelling data from the government for us to modify our position. Our members are reporting widespread concentrations of birds across the state, particularly after the significant rainfall in early December.

More than 26000 duck hunters, the regulated participants and primary customers of the Game Management Authority, who pay the Government for the privilege, deserve a comprehensive explanation of the rationale behind this decision. We call for the Andrews Government to refund all duck hunting license holders 62.5% of their current license fees in line with the announced season modifications. It is only fair that the government reduce the fee in line with the reduced season.

The season setting process is flawed, secretive, relies on data not fit for the purpose and lacks any transparency. The complete absence of quality science backing this decision is a major concern and we call on the government to immediately overhaul the process to address these deficiencies and implement an adaptive harvest model as soon as possible to take the politics out of season setting.

We question what is trying to be achieved by the reduced bag limit and season length when the expert scientific view is that hunting has no adverse impact on the sustainability of waterbird populations.

All the Andrews government has achieved with this announcement is to further increase the economic hardship on regional Victoria by reducing the time and incentive for hunters to spend money in struggling regional centres.

Richard Light

CEO, Field & Game Australia

GMA Media Release

Dry conditions lead to restrictions for 2019 duck season

The Game Management Authority (GMA) has today outlined the arrangements for the 2019 duck hunting season including changes to the season length and the daily bag limit.

Prevailing and persistent dry conditions across eastern Australia has reduced duck numbers, breeding and wetland habitat in Victoria. As a result, the GMA advised the Victorian Government that a modified season was necessary to reduce the seasonal harvest, to ensure duck hunting is conducted responsibly and duck numbers remain sustainable.

The 2019 duck hunting season will be modified from twelve to nine weeks commencing on Saturday 16 March 2019 and closing on Sunday 19 May 2019.

Hunters will be restricted to four game ducks per day on the opening weekend, with a five game duck per day bag limit for the remainder of the nine week season. The hunting of Blue-winged Shoveler will again be prohibited throughout the entire season.

As per last year, hunting on the opening weekend of the 2019 season will commence at 9.00 am on Saturday and 8.00 am on Sunday across the whole of Victoria as part of a two-year trial of opening the season during daylight hours. For the rest of the season, hunting times will revert to the standard period of half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.

The settings for the 2019 duck season are based on analysis of habitat and waterbird surveys conducted across eastern Australia and other data relating to game duck abundance, habitat distribution and climate.

Hunters are reminded of the laws introduced last year requiring them to immediately retrieve all game ducks that they shoot and to at least salvage the breast meat from a duck to ensure that harvested game is not wasted. These laws formalised what is already standard practice for responsible hunters.

The GMA and partner agencies, including Victoria Police, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions and Parks Victoria, will be out again in force in 2019 to ensure compliance with both hunting and public safety laws.

As in previous years, the GMA will continue to monitor conditions in the lead up to and during the season. Where warranted, wetlands may be closed to hunting to protect significant concentrations of waterbirds.

Details of the 2019 duck season, including fact sheets and information about any wetland closures throughout the season, will be available on the GMA website in due course.