Thar-hunting ban causes concern

Press, 10 January 1984, Page 16

Thar-hunting ban causes concern

The Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society has challenged the Forest Service to back up its assertion that a year-long ban on commercial hunting of thar does not apply to national parks. The society is worried that the ban could be “disastrous” for alpine vegetation. Mr Roger Washbourne, of the Forest Service, had been reported in “The Press” of December 27 last as saying that national parks were excluded from the commercial hunting ban, imposed by the Minister of Lands, Mr Elworthy, on August 18. “Mr Washbourne appears to be unaware of the conditions of the hunting moratorium sent to all commercial hunters on September 27, 1983,” said the national conservation officer of the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society, Mr G. D. McSweeney.

He said the letter said clearly that the thar-hunting ban applied to all commercial carcase recovery both inside and outside national parks. Game depots and packing houses were also prohibited from buying thar carcases.

“The Forest Service is required to monitor, and, if necessary, introduce tharcontrol work within the Mount Cook National Park.

However, the adjoining Westland National Park is excluded from this sensible provision,” said Mr McSweeney.

“Recreational foot hunting has never been effective in controlling thar numbers in the high country, and so the commercial tharhunting ban is likely to be disastrous for the alpine vegetation of the Westland National Park,” he said.

The introduced Himalayan thar occupied the high alpine zone of the Southern Alps, one of the most fragile eco-systems in New Zealand.

Thar congregated in the alpine grasslands and herbfields, grazing palatable plants at these “camping sites” to extinction, said Mr McSweeney. Alpine buttercups, such as the Mount Cook lily and the rare Godley’s buttercup, were particularly vulnerable to browsing thar. Plant recovery was extremely slow, and bad soil erosion could result in some cases, said Mr McSweeney.

“Whereas thar are native to the Himalayas and also occur wild in South Africa and Argentina, and in zoos throughout the world, New Zealand’s alpine vegetation is unique to this country and deserves maximum protection,” he said.