Deep in one of Aotearoa’s most picturesque hunting spots, Central Otago, there’s a group of shooters who reluctantly call themselves “the last of the summer wine”.
Not because of Central Otago’s unrivalled pinot noir, or even because they’ve shared a few reds after many successful hunts. But because, like an aged wine, these gentlemen are on the “seasoned” side of their hunting careers, and highly valuable.
The volunteer rabbit shooters range between 60 and 84, the majority of them over 70 and climbing hills better than they did in their 40s, they reckon. All the while, they’re reducing a problematic rabbit population by over 2000 a year between just a few men.
The group came together about 15 years ago when founding member Ken Copland, who was venturing out most weekends with just his dog, asked his mate Russell Duff along for a shoot.
“We were recently retired and it was an opportunity to get out on a Sunday and get some exercise and do some good for the rural community,” Duff said.
Since that invite, the hunters have grabbed their guns almost every weekend without fail.
“It keeps us mentally and physically fit. When you’ve had a great day out there in the hills, aside from the camaraderie, you get a real buzz from the whole exercise.”
Before retiring, the men had jobs ranging from insurance to the travel industry and working as an electrician. The one thing they have in common is that somewhere along the way they caught the hunting bug.
“From an early age I had a rifle and I did a lot of hunting in South Otago. Then I had kids and worked in Dunedin and didn’t get much time to hunt,” said Duff, who hails from Balclutha.
Member Mike Prendergast, who was a supermarket owner before retirement, was also a New Zealand bore shooter representative for eight years.
“My father was always into it. He was a wonderful shot, shooting clay birds and of course a keen duck shooter.
“As a boy I would always go out with him and I had a single-shot gun. I loved it from the start.”
Their hobby, as it turns out, isn’t purely for selfish reasons.
Shooting benefits the rural community through culling not just rabbits, but wild pigs, deer, goats, geese, ducks and wallabies.
Central Otago has a problematic rabbit population. The plague of rabbits has destroyed thousands of grape vines, chewed through fence posts and orchard trees, and cost landowners thousands of dollars.
The Otago Regional Council have not kept up with the problem. Pest management hasn’t been covered by rates since 2015, and as the Rabbit Board established in the 1940s had been pulled in the 2010s, the responsibility shifted to landowners to poison, shoot or trap pests.
Many property owners can’t afford the time or costs involved.
A “slab” of bullets costs $250, which equates to about $1 a shot. So, while some pay greens fees, the retirees are shooting away approximately $50 a day to keep the plague at bay.
“Now and again the farmers might make a contribution to it but we certainly don’t seek it and it is more of a goodwill thing to do the pest clearance in return for access,” Duff said.
A daily shoot can kill about 150-200 rabbits. The group have shot over 1200 rabbits since January.
“The population has certainly waxed and waned over the years. What we are doing could never keep up. But we have about 10-12 properties that we will shoot in rotation throughout the year,” he said.
The sport takes them as far as the Waitaki Valley, to West Otago and Southland. On Waitangi weekend they shot 2000 feral geese in Maniototo.
Prendergast conceded that the away trips include a little more luxury nowadays.
“Now that we are getting older, we do like a bit of comfort. We stay in some really good huts and facilities, because you’ve got to look after yourself a bit more,
“The tenting days are over.”
Neither man wanted to say who of the wider group has the best eye, but Prendergast has a secret advantage.
“I had laser eye surgery a few years ago, so I am in full speed.
“It is difficult to say because we are all pretty much on the same page even though we are shooting wings and four legs. We all like to think we are pretty good.”
His humility couldn’t hide an 18-pointer trophy stag shot in the Cardrona Valley, which sits at the Canterbury gun club as it’s too big for his own wall.
“I always said to my wife I wanted to put it over the bed … She wasn’t too keen, in fact she has told me not to bring anything home, she is over the duck dinners.”
He has another deer head in his garage.
“That was an interesting hunt. With the patience I waited, he was about 300m away from me, but I shot him clean as a whistle.”
The hunt isn’t about the prize, for these men.
“We all love it. From my point of view, I don’t play golf or do a lot of other things. I love getting out in the hills as it keeps me fit and it keeps me involved socially with the guys.”
And at 74, he plans on doing it “as long as I can”.
In Focus Podcast: Full Show | 12 April
