Hello Sean,
Are there any links to the scientific methods and assumptions used to reach that number? I would really want to have a look at them…
Cheers,
D.
> From: sdooley@bigpond.net.au > To: pshute@nuw.org.au; davidtorr@gmail.com; risingphoenixdim@hotmail.com > CC: birding-aus@vicnet.net.au > Subject: RE: [Birding-Aus] Duck shooting season- There’san identification test? > Date: Tue, 7 Feb 2012 08:42:42 +1100 > > Peter, is there an equivalent ID test for quail shooters? > > I was surprised to learn last year that there is still a (Stubble) Quail > season in Victoria. And I was stunned to read a Victorian government report > which said that in the last quail shooting season they estimate that 678,000 > quail were killed. I wouldn’t have believed there were this many quail in > the entire state but the report claims fairly rigorous methods based on > surveys of what hunters have said they shot. (And extrapolated out, taking > into account all the licence holders who said they didn’t go shooting.) > > What concerns me most, is how the hell do these quail shooters identify > their prey? I know even after thirty years’ birding I struggle to identify a > quail as it whirrs up from below my feet. In that split second that a bird > bursts from cover I still regularly momentarily mistake a pipit, skylark or > songlark for a quail, let alone nailing an ID of which quail (button-quail > or Plains Wanderer) it is. > > Is there any ID test for quail shooters, and if so, do they get the > extraordinary luxury of 20 seconds to make their choice as we have learnt > prospective duck hunters have in their ID tests? In my experience, most > quail encounters are over in about 5 seconds or less. > > I wonder how many of the estimated 678,000 birds killed were actually > Stubble Quail? How many Little Button-quail, Red-chested Button-quail or > Plains Wanderer? We know that Plains Wanderer still exist near Melbourne as > one was “brought in” by a hunting dog a couple of years ago. How many others > got blasted that we never hear about, particularly as the majority of quail > hunting takes place on private land, away fom prying eyes. > > Sean > > > > —–Original Message—– > From: birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au > [mailto:birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au] On Behalf Of Peter Shute > Sent: Tuesday, 7 February 2012 7:36 AM > To: Peter Shute; ‘Dave Torr’; ‘Dimitris Bertzeletos’ > Cc: ‘Birding Australia’ > Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Duck shooting season- There’san identification > test? > > Part of the training DVD can be viewed here, at the bottom of the page: > http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/game-hunting/game/australian-water-fowl > > Peter Shute > > > —–Original Message—– > > From: birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au > > [mailto:birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au] On Behalf Of Peter > > Shute > > Sent: Tuesday, 7 February 2012 7:24 AM > > To: ‘Dave Torr’; ‘Dimitris Bertzeletos’ > > Cc: ‘Birding Australia’ > > Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Duck shooting season- There’s an > > identification test? > > > > When the test first came in, people I know who had been duck shooting > > for years had to buy the training video in order to be good enough to > > pass the test. I would imagine therefore that they’re a lot better at > > id in flight than they were before, which is a good thing. > > > > The video is called “Ducks in Sight”. I’ve got a vague memory of > > seeing it for sale at the BOCA shop, so I get the impression it’s > > useful for learning id. > > > > I don’t think they’re required to ever sit the test again, so just > > like a drivers’ licence, there’s nothing stopping people who’ve > > forgotten everything they learned from shooting/driving regardless. > > But the tests do stop those who can’t be bothered learning id from > > ever getting a licence, so I imagine there are far less illegal > > species shot by mistake than there were before. > > > > How many are shot anyway, I don’t know. Those collected by volunteers > > are probably a small percentage of the total, given how many shooters > > use private wetlands. I’m guessing enforcement is the problem now, not > > id skills. > > > > Peter Shute > > > > > —–Original Message—– > > > From: birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au > > > [mailto:birding-aus-bounces@lists.vicnet.net.au] On Behalf Of Dave > > > Torr > > > Sent: Tuesday, 7 February 2012 6:34 AM > > > To: Dimitris Bertzeletos > > > Cc: Birding Australia > > > Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Duck shooting season- There’s an > > > identification test? > > > > > > Anyone who wants to drive a car has to pass a test, but the evidence > > > is that it doesn’t help some people drive safely. I assume the duck > > > shooting test is likely to be even less of a success! > > > > > > On 7 February 2012 02:35, Dimitris Bertzeletos > > >
===============================
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) to: birding-aus-request@vicnet.net.au
http://birding-aus.org ===============================