Winter feels like it’s here now, with quite a few snow dumps occurring in May. The roar timing was interesting, generally late in most places with the Sika roar especially seeming more spasmodic with quite a bit of activity well on into May.

This was as a result of the variable weather patterns and less daylight hours in a lot of places over summer. We can expect some late fawns on the ground next spring and summer.

No doubt you’ve all heard Forest and Bird have put their judicial review of DOC and the community agreement between the Department and the Fiordland Wapiti Foundation on hold for 6 months. This is straight from their press release:

"Forest & Bird welcomes the opportunity to work with the Wapiti Foundation and DOC on this critical issue,” Forest & Bird Chief Executive Nicola Toki said. 

“There have been inaccurate suggestions that Forest & Bird’s legal action is aimed at exterminating wapiti, with some speculation the judicial review could even mean the end for all game animals,” Ms Toki said.  

“I want to be clear that these suggestions are incorrect. Forest & Bird initiated the legal action to clarify the legality of the wapiti management agreement." 

Hmmm, Forest and Bird’s lodging of the judicial review in the first place has already cost conservation hugely. The Department has spent a lot of time and money on this issue, as has the Fiordland Wapiti Foundation. This is all money that could have been spent on conservation, especially when the Department has so little money left in its biodiversity budget. The only people who get rich out of judicial reviews are lawyers. What is Forest and Birds end game here, I have to wonder? They say they are not trying to stop the FWF’s deer management and conservation programs – then why on earth did they announce the judicial review in the first place, which threatened to do exactly that? The Department and the FWF would have happily sat down and worked through their concerns if they are only trying to clarify the “legality of the agreement”? There is a very very fishy smell around this. I hope they prove me wrong and they do enter into collaborative discussions with DOC and the FWF, with the end result being they support the setting up of the first “Herd of Special Interest” for Wapiti, with all the win win conservation outcomes that will have for a place of Aotearoa New Zealand very dear to my heart. 

If you were one of the awesome people who donated to help the FWF fight this judicial review, depending on the outcome of this collaboration, your funding may well still be needed!

Going forward there has to be a better way to get good collaborative outcomes for both conservation and recreation in New Zealand – and locking it up and throwing away the key will not work! Removing the very species that so many New Zealanders highly regard, that then means they will no longer visit and value these areas and put their hard earned money into their associated conservation programs, is plain stupid. With so many other things for the Government to spend its money on, economic reality is that conservation is going to come further down the list of priorities. User pays community initiatives like the FWF’s are very much going to be the way of the future in a lot of areas, and we should be empowering them - not putting them in limbo wasting theirs and the Department’s time and money with pointless judicial reviews! We do not want the future of these essential conservation initiatives and the recreations we are so passionate about to be at the whim of Forest and Bird’s hierarchy and other ecological ideologists.  The winds of change are in the air, so let’s unite to make sure the changes are the right ones! Watch this space…

The tahr rut is upon us, so let’s hope we get some settled weather so that the extremely capable and ever patient James Scott can get the ballot block guys in to enjoy that wonderful opportunity. And for those of us without blocks who are beating the feet to get into some remote tahr country - we need the good weather too! And don’t forget to shoot a few nannies while you are there!

In this issue:

• A Word from the Editor
• 06 ‘Twas The Week Before Exams, by Reuben Jones
• 14 The Godley Valley, by Luke Care
• 22 Cold Paradise, by Adam Ross
• 26 The 7mm PRC – Part Two, by Greg Duley
• 32 12 Points for Playing it Safe, by Johnny Bissell
• 38 Ancient Origins of Fallow Deer Should Inform Conservation, by Dr Karis Baker
• 42 Battle of The Broadheads, by Cody Weller
• 46 Finding and Cultivating Your Own Spots, by Dono Gibbs
• 52 Backcountry Connection, by Mitch Thorn
• 62 A Tale of Two Rams, by Brandon McMurtrie
• 68 FWF vs F&B, by Hannah Rae
• 72 Better Hunting - Part Two - Maximising our Hunting Opportunities, by The GAC
• 76 A Hunt to Remember, by Jane Cochrane
• 78 The Cheap Cuts, by Regnar Christensen
• 80 Collaboration Key to Conservation Success, by The GAC
• 82 Tahr Ballot Blocks – Willberg River, by Points South
• 84 Remote Huts – Mid Trent Hut, by Andrew Buglass
• 94 Making Do, by Corey Carston
• 99 What’s New
• 102 Uncle Geoff’s Tahr Meatballs, by Richard Hingston

Test Fires: We evaluate...

• Kiwi Ultralight Tarp and Bug Bivvy