The Post

Prickly pest placed on council hit list

- Virginia Fallon virginia.fallon@stuff.co.nz

Snuffly, sparky-eyed and an egg-eating, cold-blooded killer: meet the hedgehog.

The prickly pests are the stand-out inclusion on a hit list of 26 unwanted plants and animals targeted by Greater Wellington Regional Council.

About $6 million a year will be spent on controllin­g, excluding and eradicatin­g 15 plants and 11 animals, according to its proposed Regional Pest Management Plan, which sets the agenda for the next 20 years.

While the usual enemies – possums, rats and rabbits – feature, it was the first time hedgehogs had been singled out, the council’s biosecurit­y manager Davor Bejakovich said. ‘‘We only discovered in the past 10 years how hedgehogs were serious and significan­t predators to shorebirds, like dotterels.’’

Wellington residents were mainly supportive of pest-eradicatio­n programmes, particular­ly as the region had begun to reap the rewards, but one area of contention was cat control, Bejakovich said.

The plan suggested council spend up to $85,000 a year to control pest cats but highlighte­d the proposal as risky, because of likely strong opposition from the public. Pest cats were classified as those not microchipp­ed in an area where microchipp­ing was compulsory; unowned and unsocialis­ed; and with little or no relationsh­ip with, or dependence on, humans.

Of the animals, only rooks – a black bird the size of a magpie – were listed for eradicatio­n. A danger to farming and horticultu­re, ridding the region of the birds would cost council $108,000 a year.

Magpies would be managed under an annual $65,000 ‘‘sustained control’’ programme, rabbits would cost $216,000 a year and possums $2,415,000. Goats cost $121,500 a year to control and a combined yearly total of $1,469,665 covered mustelids.

The 20-year plan is out for consultati­on until July 27.

 ??  ?? Hedgehogs feature for the first time on the Wellington Regional Council’s pest plan.
Hedgehogs feature for the first time on the Wellington Regional Council’s pest plan.

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