My Weekends Hunting

We went out on Saturday night to kick things off and shot a few possums. Tally for the night was 6





Then Sunday morning we headed out to a farm with 500acres ofshooting space and shot 4 turkeys.

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[PeakChick]

Very good shooting Andre, as always, and great pics.

Your possums are sure a lot cuter than our native variety. I'm sure they are just as much a nuisance as ours.

Your turkeys look to be the same as ours. Are they native, or were they introduced? There are a number of places here where a harvested turkey is more respected than taking a deer. Wiley, crafty old birds. Ben Franklin was of the opinion that the turkey should have been the US national bird, he respected them that much.

[shadow]

Once again great hunt Andre, keep after those possum. I sure miss turkey hunting with my airgun's, their out here but alway's on the move. Great pic's buddy and thank's for sharing the hunt with us. Ed

[longislandhunter]

Excellent shooting and pics...  Enjoyed your post immensely.....

Jeff

Turkeys are not native to New Zealand. They like most of the pest species were introduced buy the hunting nobility back during the colonising era and farming fraternity. Possums were introduced so NZ could start a fur trade which didn't take off and they just multiplied do to there being no predators to keep the numbers down. Rabbits again were introduced for hunting. This is what I've been told. I'm from South Africa originally but this is home.

JAVZ - 10/7/2007  8:43 PM

Turkeys are not native to New Zealand. They like most of the pest species were introduced buy the hunting nobility back during the colonising era and farming fraternity. Possums were introduced so NZ could start a fur trade which didn't take off and they just multiplied do to there being no predators to keep the numbers down. Rabbits again were introduced for hunting. This is what I've been told. I'm from South Africa originally but this is home.

Yeah, I knew the situation with the rabbits, and the horrific problems they caused.
Introduced species are nearly always a problem, and such a prolific species as the rabbit with few predators to control their population spells disaster.
It's a real shame that some pinheads years ago thought bringing an animal that didn't belong there would be a good idea.
We have similar problems here with English sparrows, pigeons, and the one I despise over all others, the starling.
I wasn't aware that those possums were introduced, so I wonder where they came from.
Aside from being marsupials and their size, they have little in common with North America's only marsupial, the opposum.
Those turkeys will make excellent eating, and judging by the looks of them, they had to weigh at least 15lbs apiece.
The only introduced species I can think of off the top of my head that has not caused any real harm to the ecosystem is the Dromedary Camel that roams Australia's deserts.
In fact, the ONLY place in the world where wild Dromedary Camels can be found is in Oz.
Go figure.
Enjoy those turkeys. yum!

[Big_Bill]

Great account of your hunt Andre,

Your posts have become as an educational experience forme and others here on the GTA. I know that I have learnedmuch about New Zealand from your posts.

I love wild turkeys, and those four birds should provide you with some fine dinning !

Thanks for including us in your hunts, as these posts are the only way I will ever hunt in New Zealand ! lol

Unfortunately for me the Farmer who owns the land through them down a deep hole. We had hung them up on a fence to bleed out and he thought we were leaving them there to show him our trophies. He doesn't eat them as he says they taste like Crickets. Its all good though as he has another 30 odd waiting to go by the same means. He culls them down to 12 every year so we can still get some for Christmas.

BTW The Camels in Australia are a pest as they eat the same plants as other native species and have destroyed some of the ecosystems that used to thrive off those plants. They have wild horses as well and they are the home land of the possums we have here, only in Australia they are protected.

That was an eye opener.
It looks as if the "nature" program I saw that discussed those wild Dromedary Camels was wrong on that count.
Thanks for explaining the origin of those possums, too.
I had a hunch that they were from Oz.
btw...New Zealand is on that pipe dream list of places I would love to see.
I am such a contrarion that places such as Paris or Cancun, Mexico hold no interest to me.
NZ and its incredible mountains, wildlife, and terrain are true beauty in my eyes.
I will say that the most beautiful location I have been to thus far, and I say this as someone who has been to the Rocky Mountains several times, along with Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, would have to be the Straits of Magellan.
Describing it doesn't do it justice.

[DAMAGE]

Andre M8 the land owner prob didn't know that turkey should only be taken at a certain time of the year as they eat different foods with the ever changing seasons which makes them taste much to gamie for some people.
Shoot them when the berries are out and the grass is rich  thatswhat what some crazy person told me think he been out in the bush way to long on his own but even my father told me that they should only be taken in certain months of the year, So there you have it my friend and it works but I like my meat to be full of the game flavor.

[PeakChick]

I like my turkey sliced and on a platter, waiting for me to put it on a plate together with mashed potatos, cornbread stuffing and cranberry sauce.

[Big_Bill]

Hey Andre,

In my years of hunting turkeys, I have found that it is where you hunt them that makes the difference in there taste. If you hunt them around corn fields, they taste the best. If you hunt them in low lands, they will feed in berries and swamp foods, that's when they taste gamie.

But if you clean them very well, and add all the right spices, fruitsand vegetables, they can still be a great dinner !

By the way, I have eaten crickets, and I think they taste like chicken ?