Around 60 homing pigeons are still missing after vanishing while racing across southern skies on the opening day of duck-shooting season.
About 100 of the birds were released by the Canterbury Pigeon Flying Club in Invercargill on May 3 to take part in a six-hour race back to their pens in Christchurch.
Unfortunately, only 30 of the pigeons showed up, and club members suspected a combination of bad weather on race day and overeager duck-shooters might have played a part in their disappearance.
Yesterday, club president Steven Hann said a handful of pigeon survivors had turned up in the past few days, including one bird found at Milford Sound and a second by a woman at Kaitangata.
He was confident more of the birds would return to their pens.
"You might get them even two or three months later," he said.
"There's still a chance most of them will get home."
