A man who fatally shot a 21-year-old on a Stewart Island hunting trip - has been sentenced to five months' home detention

Ashburton man Paul Stevens pleaded guilty to careless use of a firearm causing the death of Jock Davies last July, in a hunting party of nine.

Stevens described firing at a shadowy image moving in dense bush.

The Invercargill District Court heard statements from Davies' family - who held one another and wept.

Stevens must also pay 20-thousand dollars emotional reparation.

Half is going into a tertiary scholarship in Davies' name, and half to sponsor young people through a deer stalking safety course.