Thread: Tahr Update from Doc

Tēnā koe,
As a current recreational hunting permit holder, I’m contacting you to provide an update on the Department of Conservation’s (DOC) Himalayan tahr control programme in the central South Island.
You may have recently heard about a High Court case involving the New Zealand Tahr Foundation (NZTF) who sought a judicial review into the lawfulness of DOC’s Tahr Control Operational Plan for 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021.
I wanted to share the outcome of this case with you directly.
High court case:
Recently, the New Zealand Tahr Foundation filed judicial review proceedings against the Minister of Conservation and Director-General of Conservation regarding DOC’s Tahr Control Operational Plan.
The Judge upheld one aspect of NZTF’s complaint, which was a partial inadequacy by DOC to not provide tahr stakeholders (the Tahr Plan Implementation Liaison Group) with the number of control hours that we had proposed to undertake in a reasonable timeframe for feedback.
As part of Justice Dobson’s decision, we can undertake half of our planned control programme (i.e. 125 hours of control) inside of the feral range while we undertake further consultation with tahr stakeholders and reconsider the Operational Plan for 2020-2021. This is essential control work. There are simply too many tahr and they have an impact on native plants at high densities (I have included a link to more information about this below).
Key tahr facts:
I would like to share some facts with you about our tahr control programme:
· We have no plans to eradicate tahr and are undertaking a phased approach to meet the objectives of the statutory Himalayan Thar Control Plan 1993.
· There will continue to be thousands of tahr for recreational and commercial hunting across 573,000 of public conservation land. This includes 425,000 ha outside of Aoraki/Mount Cook and Westland Tai Poutini National Parks. There is a further 133,000 ha of Crown pastoral lease and private land within the tahr Management Units.
· In Autumn 2019, the tahr population was estimated to be approximately 34,500 tahr on public conservation land alone. DOC, commercial hunters and contractors controlled approximately 11,000 tahr between July to November last year. There has since been another breeding season.
· We first signalled two years ago we needed to step up our tahr control efforts to protect the natural values of the national parks. National parks are special places and they need to be protected and preserved for all New Zealanders.
· Bull tahr will only be targeted by DOC in Aoraki/Mount Cook and Westland Tai Poutini National Parks where DOC legally needs to reduce tahr numbers to the lowest practicable density.
· Outside of the national parks, DOC will leave all bull tahr for recreational and commercial hunters and only target high localised densities of female and juvenile tahr.
· DOC will record bull sightings (outside of the national parks) and upload this information to the tahr webpage for hunters to plan their next hunt.
· DOC’s planned control work will have a minimal effect on the commercial hunting industry as the vast majority of commercial hunting takes place outside of public conservation land.
· Data from trophy exports between 2014 and 2016, indicates on average, 1000 to 1100 commercially hunted bull tahr leave the country each year.
· Concession returns show just 316 trophy bull tahr are commercially hunted on the conservation estate annually, and less than a hundred of those are taken from the national parks (the only place where DOC will control bulls).
More information:
Tahr Control Operations: https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-re...ol-operations/
Learn more about why DOC undertakes tahr control: https://www.doc.govt.nz/globalassets...-factsheet.pdf
Information on tahr and their impacts is available at: www.doc.govt.nz/monitoring-reporting
Recent media release: https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-r...ational-parks/
Ngā mihi nui,
Dr Ben Reddiex
Operations Director

Mt Cook snd Westlsnd Natl parks - "to reduce tahr to the LOWEST PRACTICABLE DENSITIES".
In other words, to attempt to eipe them out.
DoC' s aim elsewhere is to hammer tahr down to around 1 per 100 acres.

Still no talk of review the legitimacy of the 30 year old HTCP, and no talk of undertaking robust study/science(as required by the HTCP) so we can actually have a decent understanding of the effect tahr have on the landscape. What a bunch of numpties

Numpties is a far more polite term than the ones that spring to my mind

Originally Posted by Nick-D

Still no talk of review the legitimacy of the 30 year old HTCP, and no talk of undertaking robust study/science(as required by the HTCP) so we can actually have a decent understanding of the effect tahr have on the landscape. What a bunch of numpties

Yep.........I suspect that that email was a part of Doc's response to being told by the court to consult more properly.......so I will be responding and will be making that very point Nick-D. Seems to me that reviewing that plan is just what DoC don't want to do.......

The precedent set for all National Parks. Where now for the Wapiti Herd, the Deer & Chamois. How long before the likes of Victoria FP, Tararua FP are proclaimed National Parks. Do not be fooled and the tone of that DOC e-mail says it all. They deem themselves all powerful and above the Law. They proved it in the Ruahine FP 2 years ago. Hunters/Hunting are in for the fight of their lives and the ballot box is the only place we will change anything. There is no negotiating with an Agenda.

Yes; and be mindful of the prior attempt by this corrupt government department to rename and reclassify Forest Parks and RHA's into "Conservation Parks" which would then have their Natl park policies incorporated. Leopard will not change its spots regardless of its disguises.

Originally Posted by Woody

Yes; and be mindful of the prior attempt by this corrupt government department to rename and reclassify Forest Parks and RHA's into "Conservation Parks" which would then have their Natl park policies incorporated. Leopard will not change its spots regardless of its disguises.

This is a worry , that will be the end of hunting up there as we know it , any small hobby gold mining permits will be scrapped with it , the land does not need the so called "protections" offered by a national park status .

https://www.fmc.org.nz/remarkables/

As BSA said above
There is no negotiating with an Agenda. Sad to say this but the majority of to days hunters can NOT see or understand what is happening
in this country and other countries in regards to firearms and our game animals. Do the research ,far too many in denial.
It is happening here.

Originally Posted by BSA

the ballot box is the only place we will change anything.

Hear Hear!

And in my view, popular politicians are not who we should be rooting for.

Get a genius Accountant to do the Finances, A stunningly intelligent Lawyer to run Justice and a Scientist to run the Environmental parts. And a builder to build the houses and a doctor to do health and you see where I'm going with this.

For people aspiring to be politicians, we should run some popularity contests to identify them and the winners could be given a TV series and then after that, another TV series if the ratings were good and obscurity if they weren't. But all contestants would be banned from entering government, any Government role, Councils, school boards etc.

Popularity is for attention whores.

make no mistake about it DOC are not to be trusted

Originally Posted by Lucky

make no mistake about it DOC are not to be trusted

Doc will do essentially what is mandated to them, (I know a couple of people who work there, good sorts). You can bet your house on the fact that the attempted ram through of this was driven by Sage. Their SOP is pretty heavy on stakeholder colsultation as a whole. Sage gotta go if we want hunting to remain viable in this country

Mr Reddiex Tahr update is full of numbers that looks like there is some science behind it , where the hell do those numbers come from , and they are going to let recreational hunters know where to find animals after the Cull , I call Bullshit to all of it !

Another interesting thing , try and find a map on the DOC site that shows you the boundary's of Mt Cook and Westland National Parks .

That was my reply today:
Dear Dr Reddiex,
Thank you for the information you are bringing up.
But unfortunately, the fact that DOC did not consult with the relevant parties ( NZDA , Thar fondation ...)in the first place about the cull that was going to take place, does show the machiavellic culture at the upper management level of DOC.( Eugenie Sage is also part of the problem and should have been held accountable).
I know where DOC stands , I know where I stand and who to vote for and support with my money.

Regards.

The experts who did the Tahr count admit that the “35,000” is an estimate only & has a large scope for over or under estimation. The real number might be 20,000