"If you see a rabbit, show no mercy". That was message from Methven hunter Mark Johns and the philosophy adopted by those taking part in the Great Easter Bunny Hunt, which began yesterday.
A record number of 564 hunters have spent the past 24 hours decimating a thriving rabbit population.
The teams will be displaying their hauls in Pioneer Park, Alexandra, from noon today.
The event celebrates its 20th anniversary this year and 47 teams of 12 hunters, along with supporters and organisers, gathered in Alexandra's Pioneer Park for the contest briefing early yesterday morning.
They then learned which block of farm land they had drawn, to set their sights on and around during the contest.
"This is the mildest morning we're had for a while, so to all those softies wearing their Swannies: harden up," event convener Dave Ramsay told the hunters.
"The forecast is for rain but Central Otago's the driest place in New Zealand, so we'll see."
Mr Ramsay had a specific target in mind for the event.
"This is the 20th year of our bunny shoot and we've reached a tally of 220,407 rabbits in the past 20 years, so if you can kill 29,593, we'll hit the quarter-million mark," he said.
Last year's tally was 23,064, not far off the record number in 1999 of 23,949.
The hunt is organised by the Alexandra Lions Club and has grown in popularity to such an extent that this year 16 teams missed out.
"We've got 47 farmers on board now and struggle to get enough blocks of land to cater for the demand, so respect what the farmers tell you. The farmer is the boss, so if there's any problems with hunters, we'll be taking a hard line and banning teams - you won't be allowed back," Mr Ramsay warned.
He also gave instructions about how the hunters' haul should be displayed in the park.
"We want your rabbits but we don't want any furry felines, so if you've shot some feral cats, don't bring them here."
Teams with names like Hop Skip Bang, Slugs Bunny, and Watership Down have travelled from all over the country to take part. For teams like Taranaki Hard, the road trip to Alexandra is almost as much fun as the bunny shoot.
"It's a 2500km round trip and this is our third time here, but we've bought the kids this time, so it's their first one," Nicola Reid, of Stratford, said.
She was hoping the side could better its best tally of 700. Her daughters Danielle (8) and Ashlee (7) Reid were busy downing a pie for breakfast, before the team set off to dish out death to their tall-eared prey.
Mr Johns said his Methven-Ashburton team had spent about $1200 worth of ammunition but would give the rabbits "a sporting chance".
"We're counting on a round of ammo' per rabbit."
Prizes are given out for the top tally and the best team vehicle.
