Field & Game Australia (FGA) was deeply saddened to receive the news from family members that Max Downes had passed away on Thursday 17 October 2024, eleven days before his 97th birthday. 

FGA extends its sincere condolences to his children Greg, Malcolm, Elizabeth and Eleanor and their extended families. 

Max’s adventurous and varied career as an ecologist, collector and historian, meant that he met and inspired people from all walks of life and had connections with many Australian hunting organisations and members. 

Max was inducted as a FGA Patron in 2015 and we have been working together with the family on the Australian National Hunting Archives since then.  

Max served as a biologist and Superintendent of Game Management from 1953 to 1968, and during a pivotal time for waterfowl conservation in Victoria he advocated passionately for the protection of habitats and climate, highlighting their importance to game bird populations. 

He was undoubtedly one of the most influential figures within our industry, and, back in the day, Max was able to convince government authorities and other regulatory bodies that habitat loss rather than hunting pressure was the cause behind the decline of certain species of our gamebirds, specifically Pacific black duck. 

Max’s vision and dedication were instrumental in establishing Victoria’s network of 200 public land state game reserves, a legacy that continues to benefit wildlife today. 

 In 2018, at our 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner celebration Max enthusiastically reminded all non-hunters in attendance of our conservation history and our important contribution to preserving wetland habitat. 

FGA and Wetlands Environmental Taskforce, along with the Australian Deer Association and the Para Park Co-Operative Game Reserve are proud to be fulfilling Max’s wishes through the creation of the Australian National Hunting Archives (ANHA).  

This carefully compiled collection, put together by the Downes family over several decades, will enable member and public access to the largest compilation of Australian historical hunting-related records, providing a lasting legacy for future generations to remember and learn from the past to support considered decisions in the future. 

Just recently Max’s daughter Liz (ANHA Collection Manager) and Glenn Falla (Chairman of the ANHA steering committee) spent time together working on the relocation of the ANHA collection. At that time all fingers were crossed that Max would reach another of many milestones and get to celebrate his 97th Birthday. 

Vale Maxwell Crichton Downes (28/10/27 – 17/10/24) 

BSc, PgD, Field & Game Australia Patron