In the winter of 2020, the Sika Foundation launched a competition to encourage hunters to learn more about their hunting locations by studying the Sika hinds they shoot. Winter is the ideal time (ethically) to harvest Sika hinds, when last year’s young are plenty old enough to survive and before the new fawns are born.
Learning as much as possible about the habitat is a special focus for our organisation. That’s why for this competition, hunters are asked to concentrate on hinds specifically. Hinds don’t travel like stags do, so studying them provides the most accurate information about the environment they live in.
Get learning about your Sika hunting spots – look more closely at the hinds you shoot and share your ‘Hind-sight’ with the hunting community.
Become a Sika Manager – not just a Sika Consumer!
To enter, simply write a short (or longer) story about a Sika hind you shoot. Focus on what you learned about your hind and the environment she was living in, by studying the carcass in detail. Send it to us with photos by email: info@sikafoundation.co.nz
See the stories we’ve received so far here
Our Why
In this video, wildlife Biologist Cam Speedy talks about the Sika Foundation’s ‘WHY’. It’s about smarter deer management, healthy habitats supporting more sustainable hunting, and how we can link Conservation and Hunting in a more positive way.
The Hind Sight Competition will run all year, but it will be on hold between mid-November and mid-March, for ethical reasons.
Please include the following in your story:
- A nice (tasteful) photo of your hind (avoiding bloody, gruesome pics)
- Location (not spot X, but approximate area, e.g. Clements Road, Kawaka Eastern faces, Desert Road, etc)
- Initial condition assessment (ribs or hips sticking out? Round, fat ass?, etc)
- Is she in milk? (indicating a yearling from last season)
- What’s your guess at her age? (look at the bottom jaw – and while you’re there, remove it and send to the Sika Foundation for a full assessment of age, length, etc)
- Is she pregnant? Together with her age and milk status this shows if she’s breeding every year (i.e. plenty of food around) or only every second year (conditions too poor).
- Careful observation of her uterus will show dark marks (placental scars) from previous pregnancies. How many of these are present and how does this compare to her age?
- Check her cheek pouches – what has she just been eating?
- What’s in her paunch – what’s she been eating lately?
- Provide an estimate of her weight (including skin but no offal, hocks or head).
- After gutting and skinning do you have any new insight into her condition? Please score on a scale of 1-5 (poor, light, average, good, fat).
Anything else of note about the hind? - Finally, what does all this data indicate about the “place” – in terms of the Sika herd living in that habitat?
Winners will be drawn every month with a sponsored prize for the best story, and every story goes in the mix for a lucky-dip prize at the end of October.
The monthly prize is a Stoney Creek Goodie Pack – Bush T + Skull Cap Beanie + Ute Sticker + Keyring + combo worth over $80.
Terms and Conditions:
- Stories to be a minimum of 150 words.
- Entries to include a clean and non-graphic photograph, where possible.
- The jaw must be recovered and provided to the Sika Foundation for aging.
- The photos and story become the property of the Central North Island Sika Foundation and the submitter agrees the text and photos can be used for Sika Foundation promotional display.
- Judge’s decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.