Kaweka Sika -25/07/20
A hind and yearling walked onto a small alpine clearing at 11am and began browsing. They couldn’t resist the food and sun after a week of wet winter weather.
I was on a quick overnight hunt on the North Eastern faces of the Kaweka Range.
I killed the hind with a clean shot while the yearling disappeared into the scrub below.
I was surprised the hind and yearling were still living at 1100m which seemed quite high for July. The face was North-East facing and had a mixture of manuka, alpine grasses and tussocks.
I have never normally paid much attention to animals condition, only usually looking at the meat, age of animal and size of antlers– so the autopsy is new to me.
The hind appeared to be in fair condition for the time of year and the environment she was living in.
I could not squeeze or find any milk on her.
I could not identify scares on her uterus – so unsure if given birth.
I would guess her age to be 4 years.
Her checks and haunch were full of similar content – a mixture of alpine grass and some leaves – all of which was present on the face.
I would estimate here carcase weight to between 16-20kgs
I would say the environment she and the yearling were living in was regenerating and supporting them.
My gut tells me it could not handle more/additional animals.
SO PICK THE WEATHER AND GET SIKA “MANAGING”.
Cheers,
Henry Melville
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