Boyle prepared to have a shot at most careers

You hear of people chasing the sun, the surf and the summer. Chasing the game, however, is not as common. This is the journey Brian Boyle’s career has taken through, thanks to his involvement with parks and wildlife, and his passion for game animals.

So, who is Brian Boyle to you?

For the past six years Brian has been involved with the Australian Deer Association — at board level and as a member.

And he brings more than 30 years of experience with deer and management to the table, coupled with half a century of sustainable hunting passion.

“Deer management is as much about people and perception management,” Brian said.

“With people it is about managing — working with landowners and land managers to get the best social, environmental and economic outcomes for them while managing deer in an ethical manner.

“Perception — it is about addressing safety concerns: hunting is a very safe outdoor pursuit, despite what the antis and the media try to portray it as. There is also a perception deer have a much larger impact than they really do.

“I would really like to see deer management based on science — not perception and emotion.”

Raised in a hunting family, Brian said he would often be on the edge of his seat waiting for duck season to come around every year.

“I started hunting at the age of nine, when my dad took me out duck shooting in Southland, in New Zealand.

“From an early age he would take us out to the duck pond to throw feed out and help put the manuka (tea tree) on the maimai (duck hide),” he said.

“I didn’t actually pull the trigger until I was 10 — you had to be strong enough to pull the hammer back on his old shotgun — and then be able to hold it up before you had a shot.”

From university projects on the economic benefits of hunting, Brian’s passion led him from the shores of New Zealand to almost all the states and territories of Australia, with a large involvement in wildlife game management and hunting as an ecotourism aspect.

“When I left uni I had 17 years as a ranger in New Zealand, Tasmania and Victoria,” Brian said.

“In New Zealand I managed commercial deer trapping in Haust and then was officer-in-charge at Hanmar, which included the lake summer recreational hunting area.

“I did chamois DNA sampling and goat control in the area.”

From there Brian took on a position as a parks, wildlife and heritage ranger at Swansea, Tasmania.

Part of his role included managing Moulting Lagoon game reserve (the biggest waterfowl reserve in Tasmania).

“I involved hunters in erecting signs around the reserve and a fencing and revegetation program,” Brian said.

“While in Tassie I also completed my honours on the biology of fallow deer in Tasmania.”

This research was completed under the Quality Deer Management project run by the renowned deer hunter Brian Murphy, for the Tasmania Deer Advisery Council.

“I also worked for Tasmania Parks on Flinders Island as the district ranger for a couple of years running the Cape Barren goose management program, and day-to-day management and oversight of muttonbird harvesting, duck and quail hunting seasons as well,” Brian said.

From Tasmania, Brian decided to further explore the mainland, following the sambar all the way to northern Victoria, before putting the brakes on his parks career and taking up a role as the operations manager for the newly-formed game council of NSW — now the game licensing unit under the Department of Primary Industries.

“I had 10 years at the game council, including eight as chief executive,” he said.

“I organised the first few deer hunting workshops we had in NSW and had a lot to do with other workshops around the state, such as the first bowhunting workshop in Orange.”

After the game council was shut down and reformed, Brian continued to head north and found himself in the Northern Territory, getting involved with the firearms council.

“I helped get the back country hunting program up and running in Litchfield National Park and still do a fair bit of organising for it today as part of the council,” Brian said.

“I have also organised and run a number of firearms and hunting safety courses in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory.”

The Territory seemed to stick, and nowadays Brian can be found managing fisheries up there.

“I have primary responsibilities in recreational fishing education and aquarium fishery,” he said.

“I have done this job for the past five years and love it. It has so many aspects and issues in deer and hunting management in general — after all fishos are just hydraulic hunters when it comes down to it.”

So, what does Brian think is the right next step for the sustainable hunting community?

“Keep proving the antis wrong about their perceptions of hunters and hunting. Hunters come from all walks of life — we are very normal, we are law abiding, we love the outdoors and respect the environment and the animals we hunt,” Brian said.

“We need to confront the lies and misinformation about hunting — again and again and again — and keep pushing the truth forward and educating the general public.

“Forget about the extremists — they are unlikely to change; we just need to ensure their noise is not the only message heard.”