Fish & Game New Zealand is investigating after a person reported finding a bag of dead ducks, alcohol bottles, and shotgun hulls dumped at Elbow Reserve in Franklin.
Dr Lynley Tulloch told Newshub she was kayaking on Tuesday when she found the dead birds and rubbish.
"I found a bag of dumped ducks at Elbow Reserve in Franklin. This is illegal according to the New Zealand Fish and Game Council," Dr Tulloch said.
"I also noticed dead ducks and a black swan floating in the river. These birds were not retrieved and may have died a slow and painful death.
"Upstream I noticed bags of dumped alcohol cans and bottles that were overflowing into the water.
"It is also not within hunting regulations to be drinking while hunting. There were also hundreds of bullet casings in the water adding to plastic pollution."
Dr Tulloch, who has been campaigning against duck hunting since 2020, said not only is dumping the animals cruel, but the litter shows "a revolting show of disregard for the environment".
Fish & Game New Zealand spokesperson Richie Cosgrove said a contractor was sent to try to locate and appropriately dispose of the birds.
Cosgrove said dumping, or drinking while hunting, is illegal and unacceptable.
"We condemn the dumping of bird remains in this way, it's unacceptable and it's against the rules," Cosgrove said.
"It's also a requirement in the region's regulations to retrieve shot game in a timely manner and people can be prosecuted for failure to do that.
"We want to get to the bottom of this and Auckland/Waikato Fish & Game is investigating."
Cosgrove said it's unclear whether the bottles were left by hunters given it is a multi-use area.
He added the hunting community will be disappointed at the behaviour.
"The vast majority of hunters are responsible and care deeply about their environment. This kind of behaviour lets everyone down."
Dr Tulloch said it's important to make people aware of this kind of behaviour. She has launched a petition to ban duck shooting which currently has 13,000 signatures.
