The Covid-19 Level 4 Alert stopped game bird hunting, game hunting and fishing. Once NZ moves into the Alert Level 3 on 28 April 2020 though things change somewhat.
The official source of information is Fish and Game NZ. Check there for updates and more detailed information.
Fishing and Hunting under Level 3 Lockdown
Starting Tuesday April 28
Hunting: For information on hunting under Level 3 Lockdown [see below]
Fishing: Shore based fishing is permitted, close to home and within your bubble. More details [see below]
Game Birds
… we will have a game bird season under Alert Level 2 with the season also running longer in some regions.
The game bird season will open on the second Saturday following the introduction of Alert Level 2, except if that date falls on May 30. The game bird season will not open at Queen’s Birthday weekend specifically to avoid Moving Day on the 1st of June (an important date in the rural calendar when large numbers of farmers move to new farms).
Based on current Government projections, we are likely to see an opening day mid-May or early June. An example of how this would work is:
Level 2 introduced between May 11 & 15 — Opening Day May 23
Level 2 introduced between May 16 & 29 — Opening Day June 6
Hunting
From the Government Announcement:
Hunters will be able to hunt on private land with special restrictions when New Zealand moves to COVID-19 Alert Level 3, but not on public conservation land
Fishing under Level 3
See Covid-19 info for Anglers:
- All fishing must be land based. Current restrictions from the Government mean you cannot fish from a boat
- Our understanding of of level 3 restrictions is that you can fish all legal methods from the shore of a local lake or at a local river.
- All Fish & Game fishing regulations on open waters, bag limits etc. remain unaltered and will be enforced.