10,000 tahr cull on track, says DOC
The Department of Conservation is confident it can reach its target of culling 10,000 tahr on conservation land by the end of August, despite being less than halfway to that target.
DOC tahr programme leader James Holborow said that since the start of July, recreational hunters, aerially-assisted trophy hunting concessionaires and a commercial contractor have culled 3300 tahr.
‘‘While we’re currently on track to control 10,000 animals by the end of August, we’ve always said the control work is weather dependent. Any lessons from this operation will be applied to future tahr control operational plans.
‘‘Of the tahr controlled, 617 tahr were hunted by recreational hunters during the winter ballots (April to June) in the Adams Wilderness Area and Hooker/ Landsborough Wilderness Area.’’
Holborow said DOC aerial surveys indicate there are more than 34,000 tahr on public conservation land.
‘‘This excludes the population
‘‘It’s important we continue to work together to protect New Zealand alpine ecosystems from the impacts of a growing tahr population.’’ James Holborow, DOC
on private or leasehold land. It’s important we continue to work together to protect New Zealand alpine ecosystems from the impacts of a growing tahr population,’’ Holborow said.
‘‘There is no plan to eradicate Himalayan tahr.’’
He said bull tahr are not being targeted in any control undertaken throughout July and August.
DOC had intended to start the programme last October but it was postponed after a helicopter crash killed DOC senior rangers Paul Hondelink and Scott Theobald and pilot Nick Wallis.
Holborow said DOC and Nga¯i Tahu are engaging with key environmental and hunting stakeholders this month to develop a control plan for September 1 to July next year, which aims to reduce the tahr population to meet the objectives of the Himalayan Thar Control Plan 1993.
‘‘We expect to develop the plan over the coming weeks.’’
New Zealand Deerstalkers Association spokesman Bill O’Leary said few of their hunters had been involved in the cull.
‘‘It’s now the middle of winter, realistically, I imagine it won’t be until spring when we will get out there.’’
O’Leary said since the programme had started up again, there had been ‘‘constant consultation’’ with DOC.
‘‘To an extent, we’re sitting back and waiting,’’ O’Leary said.
Holborow said that in previous years, Wild Animal Recovery Operations (Waro) operators have had the opportunity to control and recover tahr on public conservation land as per the terms of their tahr carcass recovery permits.
Between 2012 and 2018 they have annually recovered between zero to 304 tahr on public conservation land.