THE National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) is cautioning licensed bird hunters in Trelawny to avoid shooting a particular white-crowned pigeon during the 2014

game bird hunting season, which opened on Saturday, and will close on Sunday, September 21.

The bird, also known as a baldplate, has been fitted with a satellite transmitter as part of ongoing research by NEPA and the Avian Research and Conservation Institute in the United States to determine its travel pattern.

The agency said recent findings have revealed that the bird is in the Trelawny area.

If the bird does get shot, however, NEPA says it will reward the hunter or field assistant who return the equipment to the agency.

Game bird hunting season is regulated under the Wild Life Protection Act. Those who hunt without a licence; hunt in game reserves, game sanctuaries or forest reserves; hunt outside designated shooting periods; hunt birds which are not designated game birds; or exceed the bag limit for game birds, can be

fined up to $100,000 and/or

face imprisonment.

Hunting sessions are from sunrise to 9:00 am and 2:30 pm to sunset on Saturdays, and from sunrise to 9:00 am on Sundays.

Hunter’s licences may be had from NEPA or one of its authorised vendors. Those wishing to purchase licences must present a Taxpayer Registration Number and a shotgun licence or user permit valid for the hunting period.

In a release to the media, chief executive officer of NEPA Peter Knight said the drought currently being experienced has not affected the birds’ breeding activities as analysis of survey data collected from February to June 2014 were comparable to previous years.

“The decision to recommend a bame bird hunting season to the NRCA (National Resources Conservation Authority) is underpinned by scientific research and analysis and consultation with the Game Bird Working Group,” he said, adding that NEPA would not have recommended a hunting season if it were not confident in its research findings.