Wetlands closed to hunting

Four of Victoria’s wetlands have additional hunting restrictions in place for the 2020 duck season, to protect or prevent disturbance to significant numbers of threatened birds.

Four of Victoria’s wetlands have additional hunting restrictions in place for the 2020 duck season, to protect or prevent disturbance to significant numbers of threatened birds.

Lake Lonsdale is closed to hunting, Tower Hill State Game Reserve and Lake Connewarre State Game Reserve have partial closures in place and hunting from boats is prohibited at Lake Bolac.

The measures in place are:

• Lake Lonsdale (near Stawell) is closed to duck hunting due to the presence of a large number of threatened Blue-billed Ducks.
• The western side of Tower Hill State Game Reserve (north of Tower Hill) is closed to duck hunting due to the presence of a large number of threatened Blue-billed Ducks. The rest of the reserve remains open to hunting.
• Reedy Lake (part of the Lake Connewarre State Game Reserve, near Geelong) is closed to duck hunting due to a large number of nationally endangered Australasian Bitterns. The rest of the reserve remains open to hunting.
• Hunting from boats is prohibited at Lake Bolac (adjacent to the township of Lake Bolac) due to the presence of a large number of threatened Blue-billed Ducks. Hunters are permitted to use motorised and non-motorised boats to retrieve downed birds hunted from the shoreline.

As in previous years, Kow Swamp near Gunbower and Reedy Lakes (Reedy, Middle and Third Lake) at Kerang are closed to reinforce their status as wildlife sanctuaries where hunting is prohibited.

Closing wetlands or prohibiting hunting from a boat ensures that threatened species are protected and duck hunting remains sustainable.

Through closing wetlands or regulating hunting methods, such as boating, we can ensure that rare and threatened species are protected, while still allowing hunting where appropriate.

Government officials will monitor the wetlands throughout the season. If the reason for the controls no longer exists, they may be removed to allow hunting.

Other wetlands may be closed or further regulated if significant concentrations of rare or threatened species are found to be present.

Hunters are reminded that the daily bag limit is three game ducks per person per day, start times have been delayed until 8:00am from Wednesday 13 May until Sunday 17 May 2020 (inclusive) and the Blue-winged Shoveler is prohibited from being hunted.

Hunters must make all reasonable efforts to retrieve downed ducks immediately and harvest at least the breast meat.

From Monday 18 May 2020, hunting times will revert to the standard period of half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset until the season ends on Monday, 8 June 2020.

GMA Game Officers, Victoria Police and authorised officers from DELWP, DJPR, Victorian Fisheries Authority and Parks Victoria continue to patrol wetlands across Victoria to ensure hunters act in a safe and responsible manner.

For more information on wetland closures, visit Wetland closures – 2020 duck season

Contact: Nicholas Foster | 0417 293 365 | nick.foster@gma.vic.gov.au