Pukefco call ‘a horrible experience’

Press, 15 November 1984, Page 1

Pukefco call ‘a horrible experience’

PA Auckland The slaughter of 107 pukekos at an Auckland regional park upset some local residents and a wildlife lover who was asked to organise the kill.

A woman who saw the shooting said it was distressing to watch the birds being shot during a twohour period at Shakespeare regional park at Whangaparaoa, a fortnight ago. The woman, who did not want to be named, said the shooting was in view of houses.

The Auckland Regional Authority has received complaints about the shooting of the birds, which are a protected species.

The Wildlife Service issued a permit for the cull. An Auckland University

zoology lecturer, Dr John Craig, helped organise the cull, but said it was a “horrible” experience. The university has been studying the pukeko population of about 1500 since 1978.

The pukekos have been blamed by A.R.A. park rangers and local farmers for fouling water troughs and spreading infections. Local residents had also complained that the birds raided their gardens. Dr Craig said that instead of shooting the birds, they could be built up as an attractive feature of the park.

A parks officer said the shooting was a trial “with research in mind.” The effects of removing a small number of birds would be studied, he said.