Field and Game Australia
Encyclopedia
Field and Game Australia (FGA), based in Seymour, Victoria is Australia
's leading hunting and shotgun target shooting organisation. It also has a background in wetland conservation and preservation.
FGA has always been an advocate of "sustainable utilisation" as the best way to conserve the native flora and fauna of Australia. They believe that as hunters they understand the need for sustainable shooting. FGA volunteers undertake waterfowl counts each year to assist government wildlife managers obtain waterfowl population numbers and locations. These figures are not published but reported to the Hunting Advisory Committee.
Over the years its members have built and organised the construction of thousands of nest boxes across Australia. They are monitored regularly, nesting numbers are recorded, and introduced species are removed. This work has been very successful in breeding birds and educating the wider community of the importance of wetlands and their native inhabitants.
The current chairman is Russell Bate
.
In 2009, Gary Howard, Field and Game life member and past president, Sale Field and Game spokesperson and nephew of Field and Game founding member Herb Guyatt, was found guilty in Sale Magistrates Court on the charges of taking and using water without authority, and with interfering with the flow in a waterway. Mr Howard was fined $1500 and ordered to pay costs of $1500. The actions were uncovered by the Coalition Against Duck Shooting who monitored Heart Morass after learning that 100 Field and Game members had paid to hunt on the opening weekend. The police investigation showed that Mr Howard had released water onto the property, owned by the Field and Game Association, just prior to the opening of the duck-hunting season, in order to attract ducks for better shooting conditions for paying members.
In 1978, the VFGA won the Victorian Conservation Prize for "the defence of Victoria’s wetlands, the preservation of wildlife habitat and development of public awareness". The prize is awarded annually to an organisation who has shown outstanding contributions to conservation over the previous five years.
Research by the VFGA in Victoria during 1992–1993 showed that lead
levels in Black Duck
at Lake Buloke had reached internationally recognised dangerous levels. This prompted the VFGA to lead the phase-out of lead shot for waterfowl hunting, which was completed in 2002.
In 2001, FGA founded the Wetland Environmental Taskforce Public Fund (WET) to raise money to protect wetlands.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's leading hunting and shotgun target shooting organisation. It also has a background in wetland conservation and preservation.
FGA has always been an advocate of "sustainable utilisation" as the best way to conserve the native flora and fauna of Australia. They believe that as hunters they understand the need for sustainable shooting. FGA volunteers undertake waterfowl counts each year to assist government wildlife managers obtain waterfowl population numbers and locations. These figures are not published but reported to the Hunting Advisory Committee.
Over the years its members have built and organised the construction of thousands of nest boxes across Australia. They are monitored regularly, nesting numbers are recorded, and introduced species are removed. This work has been very successful in breeding birds and educating the wider community of the importance of wetlands and their native inhabitants.
Historical background
Field and Game Australia was established in 1958, as The Victorian Field and Game Association (VFGA), by hunters who were concerned about the loss of habitat and species of birds that they enjoyed hunting. In 1998, the organisation was renamed and restructured into the current form.Organisational structure
FGA has over 15,000 members, over 60 branches and 51 simulated field clay target shooting grounds throughout Australia. FGA volunteers spend many thousands of hours on a variety of activities, including wetland rehabilitation and management, shooter education, waterfowl identification courses ("WIT tests"), firearm safety and training, pest and vermin eradication, and organised duck hunts and fox drives.The current chairman is Russell Bate
Russell Bate
Russell Bate is the Country Alliance spokesperson; chairs Field and Game Australia, Majitek Pty Ltd, the Firearms Safety Foundation of Victoria and is a member of the Commonwealth Firearms Advisory Council....
.
Publication
The national FGA magazine is Feathers and Fur. Feathers and Fur provides the latest information on hunting and provide members with a forum to discuss their passion and share photographs.Legal issues
In 2009, Gary Howard, Field and Game life member and past president, Sale Field and Game spokesperson and nephew of Field and Game founding member Herb Guyatt, was found guilty in Sale Magistrates Court on the charges of taking and using water without authority, and with interfering with the flow in a waterway. Mr Howard was fined $1500 and ordered to pay costs of $1500. The actions were uncovered by the Coalition Against Duck Shooting who monitored Heart Morass after learning that 100 Field and Game members had paid to hunt on the opening weekend. The police investigation showed that Mr Howard had released water onto the property, owned by the Field and Game Association, just prior to the opening of the duck-hunting season, in order to attract ducks for better shooting conditions for paying members.
Accomplishments
From 1963 to 1965, the VFGA vigorously opposed a proposal by the Victorian Government to drain the Hirds and Johnsons Wetlands drained. Subsequent to their political victory, the organisation has worked to preserve these wetlands.In 1978, the VFGA won the Victorian Conservation Prize for "the defence of Victoria’s wetlands, the preservation of wildlife habitat and development of public awareness". The prize is awarded annually to an organisation who has shown outstanding contributions to conservation over the previous five years.
Research by the VFGA in Victoria during 1992–1993 showed that lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
levels in Black Duck
Black Duck
There are three dabbling ducks named as Black Duck:* African Black Duck, Anas sparsa* American Black Duck, Anas rubripes* Pacific Black Duck, Anas superciliosaOther uses...
at Lake Buloke had reached internationally recognised dangerous levels. This prompted the VFGA to lead the phase-out of lead shot for waterfowl hunting, which was completed in 2002.
In 2001, FGA founded the Wetland Environmental Taskforce Public Fund (WET) to raise money to protect wetlands.