Thread: Decades of 1080….before and after

Originally Posted by ebf

MH, continued aerial poisoning is not really how the sanctuary model works.

They tend to do initial aerial drops to eradicate pest species within a fenced off area, and then go into a "maintenance mode" where the emphasis is more on tracking tunnels, regular sweeps with mustelid detection dogs and monitoring of the bird population to identify any incursions. Obviously a lot of work on the sidelines to maintain and check fences etc.

Some of the older sanctuaries (Karori) had fences where the mesh design allowed juvenile mice to enter. In those sanctuaries there is a yearly ground based bait operation (Brodifacoum ?) to deal with mice.

I am not aware of any of the fenced sanctuaries that continue with aerial poisoning once the initial pest knock-down is done.

The expanding bird population at places like Zealandia, Pukaha, Maungatauteri and Orokonui is well documented.

I have nothing but admiration for the fenced sanctuaries and no criticism at all. I think we are discussing the continued poisoning drops over open bush areas.