Thread: Tahr cull- where are we at now?

Originally Posted by Dama dama

Correct.

As far as I'm aware, cull still on hold after the helicopter tragedy last year (lose of key staff) and then the Chch tragedy (loss of key tool).

So, I assume, tahr cull on hold until exceptions for semi-autos come through for pest professionals. This situation impacts wallaby, goat, pig, rabbit etc control on both DOC and private land. A few ticking away with semi-auto 12ga, but not as effective as an AR.

Cut n paste from the tahr foundation:

Here’s an update from Ben Reddiex at DoC on the tahr issue. We’ve had some pretty mixed weather so far for the tahr ballots, but any of you who are getting out there, make sure you shoot a few nannies while looking for that big bull, and keep recording your kills on the website.

The following is a short update on a few tahr matters:
• Recreational hunting
- The Tahr Foundation, NZ Deerstalkers Association, Game Animal Council and DOC are working on a new system to accurately record and verify the number of tahr recreationally hunted.
- A range of publicly available hunting apps have been assessed and reviewed and together we have refined the features required for the new system. We will shortly be moving to a short field trial.
- In the interim, DOC has continued recording and collating hunting returns uploaded to the DOC website and we encourage recreational hunters to continue to log these.
- The recreational hunting returns on the DOC website as at 30 May 2019 are shown in the table.

• Tahr research and monitoring
Key scientists and most Tahr Plan Implementation Liaison Group members were represented at the tahr research and monitoring workshop held at Lincoln University on 9 May.
The purpose of the workshop was to identify key research and monitoring questions for effectively implementing the Himalayan Thar Control Plan 1993.
- The write-up of the workshop is nearly complete and the findings will contribute to the future tahr work programme.

• Tahr control
No tahr control has been carried out within the seven management units this calendar year.
From May to the end of June, DOC is focusing on controlling tahr within the exclusion zones to prevent the breeding range geographically expanding.
DOC is continuing to search the northern and southern exclusion zones for tahr, and will continue searching other areas of public conservation land outside of the tahr management units until the end of the month.
DOC will shortly be fitting new radio collars to tahr as part of the judas tahr programme.
Tahr control will be undertaken across the tahr management units from 1 July to 31 August 2019 (as per the Tahr Control Operational Plan: 2018/19). This will include:
- A request for tender (RFT) for contract control of tahr has been issued (1000 tahr in each of two areas). The RFT closed on 31 May and tenders are currently being evaluated.
- Aerially Assisted Trophy Hunting (AATH) environmental contributions (where 5 females/juveniles are to be culled for every trophy taken by AATH concessionaires)
- Department control