Recreational duck and quail hunting will continue in Victoria with important changes to ensure it remains safe, sustainable and responsible.

The Victorian Government today announced its response to Parliament’s Inquiry into Victoria’s recreational native bird hunting arrangements – confirming its position has not changed, and recreational duck and quail hunting will continue with common-sense changes.

The Government will accept seven of the Select Committee’s eight recommendations in full or in principle. While the Committee did not reach consensus in its report, the views of more than 10,000 Victorians and organisations were heard in the biggest response to a Parliamentary inquiry ever in Victoria.

Recreational duck and quail hunting is a legitimate activity, and it matters to thousands of Victorians who love the great outdoors, but it needs to proceed safely and sustainably. That’s why we’re introducing common-sense changes to make hunting even more responsible from 2025, including:

• Improving hunters’ knowledge and skill by making education and training for hunters mandatory

• Stricter compliance levels, including further penalties for hunters breaking the rules

• Banning the use of lead shot for quail hunting

• Implementing the Waterfowl Wounding Reduction Action Plan, to reduce the risk of wounding, and

• Greater recognition of Traditional Owners’ knowledge of hunting and land management

To guide the length and conditions of each duck season, the science-based Adaptive Harvest Management process will be implemented from 2025 – making sure that it’s always science that guides the season.

After record-high native bird breeding in recent years due to the significant rainfall Victoria has received, the Victorian game duck population increased by almost three-fold.

Minister for Outdoor Recreation, Steve Dimopoulos has announced the 2024 duck season will commence on Wednesday 10 April 2024 and end on Wednesday 5 June 2024, inclusive.

Hunting start times will be delayed to 8:00am for the entire season. With a daily bag limit of six ducks per day, the Blue-winged Shoveler and Hardhead cannot be hunted for the 2024 season due to their threatened status. Determinations will be made as part of normal seasonal arrangements about sites where duck hunting will be prohibited.