He has also been sentenced to three months’ community detention and 100 hours’ community work and ordered to forfeit his rifle.
Tau was charged after five frozen kereru wrapped in newspaper were found in his checked-in luggage at Invercargill airport on June 16 last year.
He admitted possessing them but said his daughter’s partner, Douglas James Sadlier, had shot them.
Later, both men admitted concocting that story and were charged with perverting or obstructing the course of justice. Tau was also charged with killing the birds.
Judge Mark Callaghan gave a detailed sentencing indication in May.
A 15-minute hearing was held in Invercargill yesterday at which Tau and his counsel, John Munro, appeared via audiovisual link from Auckland.
Judge Callaghan confirmed a fine of $12,000 for shooting the birds and ordered Tau to undertake 100 hours of community work and pay $12,5000 in reparation to the Department of Conservation (Doc) towards the cost of investigating the case.
An order was made for the rifle used to be forfeited to the Crown.
For perverting the course of justice, Tau was sentenced to three months’ community detention, to be served at his home near Kaikohe, Northland, with a daily curfew of 7pm to 7am.
On the possession charge, he was convicted and discharged.
Judge Callaghan said kereru were an iconic species and while Tau’s offending was serious, it did not fall into the category of hunting a protected species for commercial gain.
Although imprisonment was an available sentencing option, a fine was appropriate in the circumstances, he said.
At the sentencing indication, Judge Callaghan read out some of the record of texts and phone calls between Tau and Sadlier.
In one text, Sadlier said: "Had an idea. What if I say I bought [the birds] from some random guy in the pub?"
The texts and phone calls showed an element of premeditation in a "clumsy plan" and indicated Tau was "prepared to be dishonest and circumvent the process [of justice]", the judge said.
Sadlier was convicted in November and ordered to pay a $1000 emotional harm payment to Doc.
Mr Munro said yesterday Tau had planted trees on his property and developed a PowerPoint kereru awareness presentation for use in the community and schools to show his remorse.
For Doc, senior solicitor Pene Williams said she "certainly acknowledged" Tau’s ongoing efforts to make amends.
"However, he did put himself in this position by his actions — first by shooting the birds and them by his attempts to dissemble his part in the shooting."
