A Million Deer Destroyed

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31131, 6 August 1966, Page 5

A Million Deer Destroyed

'E'OREST Service figures show that more than 2,000,000 noxious animals, including 1,000,000 deer, have * been shot by Government-employed deer cullers since the deer destruction campaign began in 1931.

These shooters have bagged more deer, chamois, and thar than any other band of hunters in the world. Some, who were employed in the war and early post-war years, when deer concentrations were at their heaviest, amassed personal tallies of about 10,000 animals.

There have been various changes in the conduct of the shooting campaign over the 35 years. Big advances have been brought about by air and motor transport, hut building, and by the development of more specialised equipment. But the mountains are just as high today as they ever were and the valleys just as rough. Deer-culling demands the maximum of fitness, which is quickly acquired in the mountains. The job entails climbing thousands of feet each day, and tramping over many miles of rough country. Swollen rivers, rain, and other difficulties have always to be contended with. “Hobnail express” will never be entirely dispensed with as the main form of transport, and heavy packs and rifles will remain as constant companions over several thousand miles of foot travel each season. First Director When deer-culling operations were introduced by the Department of Internal Affairs, deer had built up their numbers alarmingly. They were considered a big threat to the economy of the country, and early cullers came upon hundreds of deer almost daily on their shooting trips. Credit for the successful establishment of the scheme was due to Major G. F. Yerex, “the Skipper” as all shooters knew him. He was the first

director of deer destruction operations. Shooters in the early years faced a rigorous life. Tents and camping gear were bulky and inefficient, a heavy load in themselves. All food as well

had to be carried in. There were no tracks up the valleys as there are today, and no huts. Supplies Packed There was no air dropping of supplies. In suitable country packmen were employed supplying the shooters’ valley camps by packhorse teams. Where horses could not go, these men became human packhorses and carried food on their backs to supply the shooters. They came out heavily laden with deer skins. Gradually, more and more shooting blocks were opened up. Cullers were employed for seven months of the year on deer destruction and in the winter they built huts, cut tracks, erected cages over more formidable river crossings. Air dropping supplies introduced in 1946, was undoubtedly the biggest single advance in the department’s shooting campaign. Camps were erected on clearings in the valleys or on top sites suitable for aerial dropping of all provisions, ammunition, tents, and other gear. As the techniques improved even materials to build the huts were dropped by air, includ-

ing pre-cut timber, iron, cement, and tools for their construction.

These improvements, together with the abandonment of skin shooting areas in favour of payment for tail tokens, enabled shooters to spend more time with the rifle and the results soon began to show. The Forest Service took over control of deer culling in 1956 and in the decade since then the emphasis has gradually changed from maximum kills to concentrated shooting in priority areas. This policy has been most successful, and animals are becoming hard to locate in many catchments. In parts of the North Island, for instance, animal numbers are so low that it is no longer possible to operate hunters on a bonus system for tails. A weekly wage of about £lB, together with food, is paid instead. Tallies Falling Large tallies are now almost a thing of the past In the early years tallies of 1500 animals for the seven months’ summer season were readily obtainable. With the drastic reduction in the herds in many areas, today's shooters have to be content in some cases with perhaps one deer a day or less, compared with 10 a day in earlier years. To compensate for this the Forest Service is steadily improving facilities and living conditions.

In Canterbury alone, there are now over 120 huts and bivouacs, some with two-way radios as well as spring mattress bunks and well-stocked food lockers. Many creeks and river crossings have been made safe by walk-way bridges erected over them. The policy of protecting critical areas still continues, and the Forest Service has extended the scope of deer culling work and adopted a more scientific approach to control measures.

Shooters are trained to have a first-class knowledge of plant life, to recognise plants most palatable to deer, and to gauge animal incidence through signs of browsing. Browse signs indicate whether numbers are low, particularly if regeneration of the plants is present. Other work involved in the campaign includes the establishment of photograph plots to determine vegetation response following reduction of animal numbers, and the erection of enclosure plots where all animals are excluded to determine what growth would be without browsing.