BUSH DAMAGED

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 60, Issue 4342, 11 October 1950, Page 5

BUSH DAMAGED

WORK OF OPOSSUM

A GREAT DESTROYER

ERADICATION ADVOCATED

All along the mountain range from Te Aroha to Paeroa and back to Waihi there is ample evidence of the opossom’s work. The opossum is regarded as a menace of the worst order and at last week’s meetingwof the Hauraki Catchment Board, a member, Mr H. R. Thorp, pointed out that the reason why the opossum was more dangerous than the goat was that where the goat would only eat and strip trees and the natural forest cover up to about four feet from the ground level, «the opossum, climbed right to the top and ate more than just the green leaves and saplings. Each year the opossum does heavy damage to our bush. This damage starts off a chain of events which eventually leads up to large tracts of natural forest cover being completely destroyed. Next to fire the opossum does more damage -n a shorter space of time than the goat. The opossum carries out its destruction so effectively that whole trees become stripped and soon die out.

The destruction which the opossum has already done in New Zealand has reached such large proportions that the Minister of Internal Affairs has

approved of £12,000 being placed on the supplementary estimates of His department to enable catchment boards to operate schemes for the control of the pest. Although this sum in itself is only a small one in comparison with the number of catchment boards now operating in the Dominion, it is at least a start in encouraging the eradication of this deadly marsupial and sheets home the importance of stopping the havoc being wrought before it has gone to far. Most people (especially those living in the vicinity of the mountain range) are familiar with the opossum. In some cases the opossum has literrally stripped trees, shrubs and other vegetation.

Mr Thorpe, who has apparently studied the habits of the opossum, said at the meeting that it was probably because of the opossum that there were now very few rata and totara trees left alive in the bush in this area. He said that it had definitely been established that the pest had tackled almost every type of tree. He added that he had been amazed at the efficiency of the opossum and just how extensive was the damage already done. If the opossum was let go unchecked it would definitely do terrific damage in the near future.

The board agreed to Mr Thorp’s resolution that application be made to the Soil Conservation for a monetary grant for the extermination of the opossum in this district. The clerk, Mr C. A. Walsh, told board members that last year a field officer of the Department of Internal Affairs visited the district. He had been able to ascertain that the worst infestation had occurred in the Te Aroha-Paeroa-Waihi triangle

Mr Thorp considered that the best method of checking the pest would be by trapping, but unfortunately the prices for opossum skins were not very attractive for full-time trappers, and consequently they had to work the easiest country and places where there were large concentrations of the pest in order to make their efforts prove profitable. Also, the tvpe of opossum caught here was of poor quality therefore the skins were not very valuable. He estimated that if a good season was exerienced something like 6000 opossums could be caught.