A 49-year-old unemployed Invercargill man faces serious assault charges after a fellow muttonbirder was stabbed in the neck on the remote Titi Islands on Monday.
During a disagreement over muttonbirds (sooty shearwaters), a 37-year-old Timaru man suffered a single stab wound to the neck, just millimetres from a main artery, Detective Dougall Henderson, of the Invercargill CIB, said.
The victim was taken by helicopter from Taukihepa island, near Stewart Island, to Southland Hospital, after the pilot heard a distress call shortly after noon.
Det Henderson said he spoke to the victim when he arrived at Invercargill. The man indicated he wanted the incident investigated.
The victim, who was stabbed with a black boning knife, was known to the alleged assailant but was not a relative, Det Henderson said.
While the islands have restricted access to those Maori who have harvesting rights, police were granted permission to fly to Taukihepa island on Tuesday morning.
Armed offenders squad members and detectives, including Det Henderson, arrived on the island at 8.20am and arrested the unemployed Invercargill man. The man would appear in the Invercargill District Court on Friday, on "serious assault charges", Det Henderson said.
Despite advice from hospital staff, the victim discharged himself and returned to the island yesterday to finish muttonbirding, Det Henderson said.
Pilot Jason Wright, of Stewart Island Helicopters, said that when he flew the victim to Southland Hospital he was coherent but probably in a state of shock.
"It was a pretty nasty gash. It extended from below his ear to the front of his throat. He was very lucky he didn't get hit in the jugular."
After surgery, the man was back on the first flight to the island at 8am "all stitched up" and with a supply of medication.
"He had a lot of work to do and wanted to get it done."
Mr Wright said there were hundreds of muttonbirders on the islands around Stewart Island during the muttonbirding season, which ran from March 15 to May 31.
"Every year, they get a bit agitated towards the end of the season.
"They have been on the island for a long period of time and you get a bit of cabin fever and they get a bit ratty with each other and things start."
