Trying to dig a duck pond in a protected coastal marine area saw a duck shooter come close to being prosecuted for his trouble.

The keen shooter borrowed a digger to illegally excavate a pond next to his maimai in February.

The stuck digger. It has since been removed. Supplied photos.

The area near Waitakaruru, in the southern Firth of Thames, is part of an internationally significant wetland that extends along the shoreline between Miranda and Thames, and is also one of New Zealand's three most important coastal stretches for shorebirds.

Someone complained to the local regional council about a digger stuck in the wetland. Council officers arrived to find the machine nearly fully submerged in a large hole surrounded by piles of excavated marine mud.

The duck shooter claimed he was using the digger to remove leftover building materials from his maimai. But the investigation found that he was digging a pond for the up-coming duck shooting season.

The offending and resulting damage to the environment was compounded by the man then organising more heavy machinery and equipment to be brought on site and used to help extract the stuck digger.

'We're very fortunate to have such an exceptional wetland in our region,” says Waikato Regional Council investigations manager Patrick Lynch.

'Being listed as a Ramsar site recognises the need to provide additional protection to the area and its diverse bird, plant and fish life.

'Human activity is the biggest threat to any wetland and people simply cannot go in there with 20 tonne diggers destroying habitats.”

The maimai mangler was issued with two formal warnings. The council finds it concerning that this case follows a similar incident north of Waitakaruru in 2013 where a farmer also received a formal warning for digging a duck pond.

'There is certainly scope for some activity in the wetland. However, before considering entering with any vehicles or machinery people really need to know what restrictions are in place first,” says Patrick.

Information can be obtained by contacting Waikato Regional Council on 0800 800 401 or the Department of Conservation on 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468).

• A Ramsar site is a wetland of international importance and designated for protection under the Ramsar Convention (an intergovernmental treaty named after the Iranian city of Ramsar where the original meeting was held in 1971.)

The convention recognises the important role wetland ecosystems play in providing freshwater and natural resources for use and the need for conservation and wise use of them.

There are just over 2200 Ramsar sites around the world – six of those are in New Zealand.