EGMONT NATIONAL PARK

Taranaki Daily News, 22 December 1923, Page 6

EGMONT NATIONAL PARK

DEPREDATIONS OF PESTSTHE GOAT THE WORST. DESTRUCTION OF BIRD LIFE. At the meeting held in New Plymouth on Tuesday evening to consider ways and means for taking a botanical survey of the mountain flora, it was mentioned that the cattle had caused the National Park Board grave concern in the past, and it was decided to give the board support in any movement made to remedy the trouble. Yesterday a Daily News reporter had a chat with a prominent member of the board on the matter. He said that cattle were not the greatest trouble the board was confronted with. There was certainly an increasing number of wild cattle in the reserve, but they generally kept on the fringe of the reserve and seldom were found higher up. The gi’eatest enemy the reserve had was the goat, which had multiplied tremendously. They ate the young flora and barked the trees, which in process of time would be killed. In a dry spell some of these might be lighted, and whole belts of the reserve would be in danger of destruction from the resulting fire. Goats were almost as hard to hunt and kill as deer. Their powers of smell were extraordinary, and it was a wily hunter who successfully stalked them. Hunters would tell you that a herd would generally have a patriarchal billy as leader, and whilst his charges were feeding he would mount guard on an eminence and warn them of approaching danger. The hunter therefore had to lay his plans very carefully in order to reach the right side and draw a bead on the goats. The first shot and the herd would disperse and that locality would not offer any more heads for the rest of the day.

INCREASE OF OPOSSUMS. Opossums had multiplied tremendously in the park reserve, particularly on the New Plymouth and Oakura sides, as may be judged from the fact that a couple of trappers bagged over 400 near the northern gate on Egmont Road last season. They also caught several stoats and weasels, the skins of some of which, owing to their colour, being worth curing. The opossums, however, do not damage the trees, simply marking them with their claws. They are very fond of climbing the telephone posts on the track, and here the trappers used to secure one at nearly every pole each evening. The marsupials have made their way up to the houses, and at times they conduct a serenade at night time. Their guttural cry is very weird, and some of the inmates of the old house have at times had their sleep rudely disturbed by the unearthly cries. STOATS AND WEASELS. The stoats and weasels are a real pest, and play havoc with the bird life of the hush. The native pigeons, for instance, build their nests in the trunks of rotten trees, and the stoats and weasels make short work of the eggs and the birds themselves. A few years ago the bush was alive with native birds, but of late observers have noted a sensible decrease, due, thev think, to the rodents mentioned. Then again some of those who have been licensed to trap opossums and kill goats and cattle have not confined their operations to this work but improved the shining hour by taking toU of the native birds. The hoard has had agents on the watch, but the culprits have been very wily and sb far have escaped detection, though evidence of their depredations have often been found. In future the board, our informant went on to say, will have to recons’der its attitude in regard to licensing trappers and hunters, and onlv grant licenses to those who will “plav the game” and leaver the birds alone, or, when funds are availaide appoint permanent men of their own to deal with the pests. X BOARD SEEKING FURTHER POWERS The National Park is on a different basis to many other national parks inasmuch that it is specially constituted under a separate Act. Over it no department has distinct jurisdiction, and as a result the board has been unable to obtain the assistance sought from any of the State Departments—Public Works, Forestry or Tourist. The Government, in other words, set up the board to administer the park but provided them with no financial means for doing so. The Tongariro Board, on the other hand, has ample powers of finance, etc., and the local board is desiruous of securing the same powers so that justice can be done to the fine reserve, such as in improving the existing tracks to the houses and the lateral tracks, extending the present buildings, planting trees, etc., and establishing a nursery for the purpose of growing both native and exotic trees. By providing additional facilities it is confidently hoped interest and sinking fund can be found for a large Government loan necessary to carry out the works named. The Premier was unable to put the Bill through last session but has undertaken to do so next session. If so then for the first time in its long history will the board he in a position to do justice to its important charge.

NORTH EGMONT HOSTELRY. The News’ reporter next saw the chairman of the Northern Hostelry about the improvements required at that popular place, and was informed that the committee was hard “up against it” on account of the losses sustained during the past two years. The elements had been very unkind during this period. Not only was there rain a,t week-ends and through the holidays, whten the hostelry generally reaped its harvest, but they must be visited by a cyclone, which smashed the roof and did other damage costing over £270 to repair, whilst a cloud burst destroyed the water supply, and an explosion destroyed the electric lighting plant. So it was no wonder that the committee lost heavily—£37B in 1921-22 and £2BO last year. The committee had gone to a good deal of exnense in 1922 in providing the cubicles at the back of the hostelry to meet demands at busy times, and in building a drying room, engine house, wood-cutting plant, etc., as well as installing another electric lighting plant, and deserved better luck than unfortunately was experienced. As for the present seAson, the prospects were much brighter, and it was confidently hoped that a profit would be made, providing the law of average prevailed so far as the state of the weather was concerned. After Christmas Day, most of the accommodation was booked up. Easter came earlier this year, and this was a decided advantage. Already this season the revenue was above the average, and it was quite possible it would reach £lBOO for the season instead of about £l5OO, the average for the past two years. TENNIS COURTS' AND BILLIARD ROOM. The future plans? Well the chairman said that their chief concern was to set

their finances in order as far as possible, but he was strongly of opinion that at the earliest opportunity they should make an effort to build over the dining room and over the entrance road a large room that could be used as a common room with a billiard table, and other inside sports facilities to enable guests to while away their time pleasantly and comfortably in wet weather and at night time. It would not be a big undertaking, but under present financial conditions the committee could not consider it. With a good season this year the position might be different. The committee, the chairman proceeded, had for some time been considering laying down a tennis court alongside the croquet green, and this work, he hoped, would be an accomplished fact before Easter. The idea was to do all the work by voluntary labour. The members of the committee were used to taking off their coats to help in rendering' the surroundings of th« hostelrv more attractive, and they

would go up again, together with a team of High School boys, and put in a couple of days’ work under the direction of Mr. W. H. Cook, the borough engineer, who had kindly consented to prepare the plans and generally supervise the job of putting down asphalt courts. With tennis courts and a billiard room the North Egmont Hostelry wpuld be much more attractive than at present. THROUGH. MOTOR TRAFFIC. Another thing. The committee expected a large influx of through motorists this Reason on account of the opening of the Awaki.uo Gorge Road. The mountain was the biggest of Mr. Gordon Fraser's “big | three”—the Waitomo Caves, the Mokau | River and Mt. Egmont—and would prove ! the Mecca of the outside motorists, sb ; that, taking everything into consideration | there was no reason to worry about th? I results of this season, provided always the [ weather behaved Recently,