Warren Barry Ayre had been working as a shooter in 2004, killing 7000 kangaroos legally on a property called Yarran Ridge at Binnaway, near Coonabarabran in the state's Central West.

The court heard his firearms licence was suspended in December that year, which automatically rendered his trapper's licence invalid.

Ayre's lawyer Craig Borg said the firearms licence was reinstated on February 3, 2005, but the firearms registry had to send paperwork to Ayre before he could have his trapper's licence returned.

"It took two months for the firearms registry to provide the paperwork to prove he had his firearms licence."

In the meantime, Mr Borg said, the 36-year-old was left without an income for more than a month.

The court heard National Parks and Wildlife officers found him in the possession of 57 kangaroo carcasses on February 7, 2005.

Mr Borg said Ayre only shot as many kangaroos as he would have been allowed to had his trapper's licence been valid.

"It was not an indiscriminate killing of kangaroos," he said.

"By the time he decides to shoot those kangaroos he hasn't had any income for over a month."

Magistrate Les Mabbutt said the maximum penalty for the offence was $11,000, plus a fine of $1100 per animal killed.

He said the law was there to preserve natural resources; however, he took into account Ayre's inability to pay a large fine, his early guilty plea and his attempts to reinstate his licences.

Ayre was fined $2500.