BirdingNZ.net

Sharing this link on facey if thats ok!

Zarkov, I see you tracked down the 4wd pretty easy.
Did anyone see you taking photos of the 4wd?

A repo guy I know found it.

We know who owns it if you're interested.

Jan wrote:Can Neil or somebody else please put this string of posts onto BirdingNZ so I can send it around in the Canterbury area?

I can't forward things from BirdingNZ.net and keep the pictures in.

Thanks,
jan [Regional Representative, Birds NZ Canterbury Branch]

Jan, the Yahoo group doesn't allow photos, so copying it there won't help. Probably best to email a link to the page.

Hello.

I will confess this is my first post and I am not an avid birder (though I have dated one, does that count?)

I have only seen this post as it has been posted on a 4wd forum that I read. These sorts of things are often shared on the site as most of us have a conscience and are good people. We try to regulate ourselves I guess, and these sorts off posts are good in so much as it keeps our eyes open to other perspectives and things that some of us may not even be aware of.

My big question here is, has anyone spoken to the driver? Obviously someone has been to his house. Personally I would have thought that the photographer would have talked to the driver at the time and explained the situation to him.

I am based in the north island and as such have no idea how obvious any signage may or may not have been. This driver (who may well not even be a 4wd enthusiast) is an arsehole if he was aware of what he was doing. I would however, guess he is guilty of ignorance rather than malicious intent. Educate the driver, and if it happens again, crucify him.

Cheers.

Arron.

P.S What is the bird in the top right corner, the registration never told me if I was wrong or right. It's a Whio? (blue duck)

I posted a link on this subject over at the 4x4 forums.

http://www.offroadexpress.co.nz/Forums/ ... 95#p407295

I feel genuinely sorry for other interest groups whose freedoms are being jeopardized by things like this.

shortylux wrote:Hello.

I will confess this is my first post and I am not an avid birder (though I have dated one, does that count?)

I have only seen this post as it has been posted on a 4wd forum that I read. These sorts of things are often shared on the site as most of us have a conscience and are good people. We try to regulate ourselves I guess, and these sorts off posts are good in so much as it keeps our eyes open to other perspectives and things that some of us may not even be aware of.

My big question here is, has anyone spoken to the driver? Obviously someone has been to his house. Personally I would have thought that the photographer would have talked to the driver at the time and explained the situation to him.

I am based in the north island and as such have no idea how obvious any signage may or may not have been. This driver (who may well not even be a 4wd enthusiast) is an arsehole if he was aware of what he was doing. I would however, guess he is guilty of ignorance rather than malicious intent. Educate the driver, and if it happens again, crucify him.

Cheers.

Arron.

P.S What is the bird in the top right corner, the registration never told me if I was wrong or right. It's a Whio? (blue duck)

Hi Shorty,

Yes, it's a blue duck.

Re the picture of the vehicle: Nowadays most pics like that are already posted online by the people that took them.

The photographer was probably the owner.

He's been given the opportunity to put his side of the story in another forum, but so far hasn't been forthcoming.


It requires some internet access and some skills but you can find people fairly easily.

It's true that what you post online may come back to haunt you.

And that nowadays, the court of public opinion is somewhat more meaningful than it used to be.

A bit of legal stuff for those that are interested.
Wildlife Act 1953
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/publ ... 78140.html
Section 63
Taking protected wildlife or game, etc
(1)No person may, without lawful authority,—
(a)hunt or kill any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or any game:
(b)buy, sell, or otherwise dispose of, or have in his or her possession any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or any game or any skin, feathers, or other portion, or any egg of any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or of any game:
(c)rob, disturb, or destroy, or have in his or her possession the nest of any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or of any game.
(1A)Every person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence and,—
(a)in respect of an offence committed in relation to absolutely protected wildlife, is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 67A(1):
(b)in respect of an offence committed in relation to partially protected wildlife, is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 67C(1):
(c)in respect of an offence committed in relation to game, is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 67E(3).

Penalties
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/publ ... 78179.html
Section 67A
Penalties for offences in respect of absolutely protected wildlife
(1)Every person who commits an offence against any of the provisions listed in subsection (2) is liable on conviction to,—
(a)in the case of an individual, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or a fine not exceeding $100,000, or both:
(b)in the case of a body corporate, a fine not exceeding $200,000.
(2)The provisions are—
(a)section 56(5)(a) (which relates to capturing, having in possession for the purpose of liberating, or exporting absolutely protected wildlife):
(b)section 63(1A)(a) (which relates to hunting, killing, buying, or selling absolutely protected wildlife, or robbing or disturbing the nest of absolutely protected wildlife):
(c)section 65(2)(a) (which relates to receiving absolutely protected wildlife taken without authority):
(d)section 65(3)(a) (which relates to being a party to an offence committed in respect of absolutely protected wildlife).

Many thanks to Grahame for posting the Wildlife Act sections relevant here.

Protected native birds are covered by this Act and anyone caught disturbing or interfering with, let alone destroying the nests of one of these species can be caught by horrendous fines, up to $100.000 or 6mth imprisonment.

The Ashburton River event resulted in the offender getting one month in jail.

If these penalties were more widely known and moreover used by courts, native birds on the verge of going extinct would be far more likely to recover their population levels. The more people know about how important such species are to our natural ecosystems and to those of the earth in general, the less likely we are to forget about them and let them fade into extinction.

Yet almost everytime I tell groups such as Weedbusters, Forest and Bird, local Councils and local Conservation Groups that they shouldn't do ['springcleaning'] or scrubland bashing during the breeding season they treat me as though I'm mad. Well I am mad, as hell.

There are only a few of us who push this 'hands off' treatment of nature during the bird breeding season; we need more on board.

PLEASE get this driver prosecuted and facing a hefty fine or worse.

As bad as this is, I am just glad that this did not happen at a Fairy Tern nesting site. That would have made the situation at hand substantially worse.