Deer jaws are a key part of understanding herd health indicators. With the jaws, the animal’s age and relative skeletal size can be ascertained. This is particularly insightful with hinds, due to their limited home ranges.
Recreational hunters are encouraged to drop off jaws at Jaw Boxes located around the Sika range, fill out the jaw card and datasheet to attach to their jaw. Hunter datasheets provide wildlife and general observations, hours hunted, animals contacted, animals shot in areas throughout the Central North Island Sika range.
Understanding hunter habits and the harvest by sex ratio are key parts for understanding the impact recreational hunters have on the herd across the Central North Island.
Jaws get aged by the Sika Foundation and hunters get sent their jaw results back with points of note in comparison with measurement averages.
Jaw boxes are located at:
- Clements Mill entrance/Sika Lodge
- Helisika Hangar
- Tauranga Taupō Garage
- Kaimanawa Alpine Adventures Hangar, Waipakahi Road
- Hendley Road, Napier
- Rivers to Ranges store, Hastings
Jaws and hunter data sheets can also be sent in. Clean jaws can be posted to:
Sika Foundation
21 Shera Street
Taupo 3330
For more information, please contact us.
Find more facilities and community initiatives of relevance and interest to recreational hunters in this community-sourced database.