Hunting in the Riverina
Red gum river country for pigs, foxes and evening rabbits
The Riverina's web of rivers, the Murrumbidgee, Murray, Edward and Billabong Creek, threads red gum forest through some of Australia's most productive irrigated farmland. Pigs work the lignum swamps and crop edges, foxes den in every second creek bank, and rabbit warrens riddle the sandy rises.
For hunters, the appeal is variety and comfort. A cottage on a rice or wheat farm, mornings on the pigs, evenings whistling foxes and kids plinking rabbits at the warren makes for the classic Australian farm hunting weekend, three hours from Melbourne and five from Sydney.
Landholders here genuinely need year-round pest pressure. Pigs hammer irrigated crops, foxes take lambs through winter, and rabbits undermine channel banks. Waterfowl in the Riverina are a special case: NSW has no general duck season, and game birds may only be taken under the state's Native Game Bird Management Program on approved properties.
Terrain
Flat riverine plains: river red gum forest and lignum swamp along the frontages, giving way to irrigated rice, cereal and canola country with remnant box woodland.
Seasons & timing
Pigs, foxes and rabbits year round. Fox activity peaks in autumn and the winter lambing period is when hosts most value control. Waterfowl only under the NSW Native Game Bird Management Program, where a property holds approval.
Licences & access
A NSW firearms licence plus your booking's written permission covers all pest species. Irrigation country carries hazards: channels, banks and night machinery, so walk the ground in daylight before any evening shoot and follow the host's paddock map.
Nearest centres
Wagga Wagga · Griffith · Deniliquin · Hay
Riverina hunting: common questions
Is spotlighting allowed on Riverina properties?
On private land in NSW, spotlighting feral animals is generally lawful with landholder consent, but it is always the individual host's call. Listings state whether night shooting is permitted, and safe directions are agreed in daylight before any night session.
Can I hunt ducks in the Riverina?
Only under the NSW Native Game Bird Management Program, which licenses landholders to manage game birds causing crop damage, mainly in the rice districts. There is no general duck season in NSW. Listings that operate under the program say so explicitly; never assume a swamp full of ducks is legal game.
What makes the Riverina good for new hunters?
Flat, open country with safe sightlines, plentiful small game and comfortable farm accommodation. A weekend of rabbits, foxes and a chance at a pig builds more field skill than a year of range sessions, and several hosts here cater specifically for families.
More hunting country nearby
Snowy Mountains NSW
Alpine sambar and fallow country on the roof of Australia
New England Tablelands NSW
Rolling granite country thick with fallow and red deer
Western Plains NSW NSW
Big sky rangeland goats and pigs west of the Divide
Victorian High Country VIC
The spiritual home of Australian sambar hunting
Hunting properties in the Riverina
No listed properties here yet
Be the first. Landholders in the Riverina can list free and keep 85% of every booking.