NZDA H&W 198 WEB

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Safari Club International record book and were taken by international hunters, are from the Wakatipu herd. For such a small herd, such a number of quality trophies taken over the years shows what a valuable resource we have. Currently the herd can produce around 20–30 record-book trophy bucks a year. By comparison the Fiordland wapiti herd, currently estimated to be around 4,000 animals, yields barely a single recordbook trophy annually. Demand for trophies from the Wakatipu herd has increased exponentially in the past 5 years, owing to increased exposure on social media, and this shows no signs of abating. The herd can sustainably cope with some hunting pressure, but the present level, if allowed to continue, will result in the loss of this valuable resource. In areas with the highest levels of hunting pressure, bucks are now almost totally absent, and this is resulting in very few fawns being observed. The number of trophy bucks available is also decreasing. This has resulted in hunters taking bucks at an earlier age. A whitetail buck doesn’t reach his prime until 5–7 years old, and in recent years it has become common to see 2-year-olds taken by overseas hunters being displayed on social media. They are even being shot in velvet, meaning that a significant number never become a trophy, or even have the opportunity to breed. These hunting practices in a trophy herd are considered unethical by most New Zealand hunters and are causing anger within local hunting communities, as they threaten and devalue our whitetail resource. Queenstown is a popular destination for overseas travellers, now with an international airport. This means that for a few hundred dollars, overseas hunters (in particular Australians) can come and hunt one of our premier game species while contributing very little to our economy, conservation efforts or this herd. In other countries, overseas hunters have to buy licences/tags costing up to $5,000 per animal, and typically a portion of the fee goes back into conservation efforts and herd management. In addition to the hunting pressure on public conservation land, landowners in the area have been “… repellent greatly reduced the by-kill of whitetail deer.” reporting an unprecedented level of illegal hunting over the past few years. As well as presenting a negative image of hunters to the public, illegal hunting is particularly dangerous in this area owing to the high level of tourist activity on both public and private land. Currently there is no active monitoring of illegal hunting on conservation land, and monitoring on private land is up to individual landowners. People who conduct hunt illegaly are not being prosecuted and have become more brazen, openly publicising their successes. By-kill from poisoning The Wakatipu whitetail herd was adversely affected by the 2014 aerial 1080 operation, with the population size being significantly reduced. While we did not have a good estimate of the population at that time, a survey estimated that around 200 deer were killed. Fortunately, during the 2016 “Battle for our Birds” operation DOC used deer repellent on its poison baits. Monitoring throughout the drop and afterwards showed that this greatly reduced the by-kill of whitetail deer. It seems therefore that as long as deer repellent continues to be used in all poisoning operations, the herd can recover. DOC must be commended for recognising the value of this historic herd and for using deer repellent where it is most needed. Significantly, the monitoring work was funded by donations from hunting groups throughout New Zealand, totalling $60,000. That such a large amount of money could be raised by donations in just 3 months indicates the importance of this herd to the New Zealand public. The Wakatipu whitetail herd has never been considered a threat to conservation values, and it is reasonable to expect that with better management it will remain in harmony with the biodiversity of the area. Whitetail deer are considered to be one of the most beautiful species of deer, and sightings of these animals in the wild are greatly appreciated by all types of visitors to the area. “Wakatipu whitetail have never been considered a threat to conservation values.” A 2-year-old whitetail buck stripping velvet in winter coat 38 NZ Hunting & Wildlife 198 - Spring 2017
Action plan What actions could be implemented in the short term to protect the future of this herd? Here are some suggestions based on recent research, social issues and simple population dynamics: »» Implement a hunting season in the Wakatipu whitetail range by not issuing permits outside of a specified season (e.g., April to August). »» Restrict permit holders to one whitetail deer each per season. »» Limit the number of permits which could be issued to overseas hunters. The benefits of these short term management actions are numerous: »» Reduces conflicts with other recreational user groups (by April there are fewer trampers on the popular walking tracks). »» Allows whitetail deer to grow their antlers undisturbed and become trophies (velvet becomes hard antler by the end of March). »» Increases the chance for trophy bucks to breed (they mate in May). »» Improves accurate identification of target animals (hunters will become more selective about the animal they take if they can only take one). »» Helps to eliminate illegal hunting on private land (whitetail deer have a different-coloured coat in summer, so animals taken out of season would be obvious). »» A season starting in April enables hunters to retain the opportunity to hunt red deer and chamois, which are also found within the whitetail deer range. »» Increases the value of the historic Wakatipu whitetail herd. »» Creates goodwill between DOC and New Zealand hunters. »» Allows a grace period to develop a more permanent management strategy and recognise this herd as a Herd of Special Interest under the GAC Act 2013. Precedents for the non-issuing of hunting permits within a national park already exist. For example, in Westland National Park, a number of areas are closed to hunting from 20 December to 1 February and over Easter weekend because of increased visitor numbers at those times. In Fiordland National Park, the wapiti area is closed to hunting in the weeks prior to the wapiti ballots. The issues presented here have been discussed with a number of hunting groups and there is a consensus that some simple shortterm measures must be implemented to ensure a future for this historic herd until it can be managed as a HOSI. Exactly what these measures will be is yet to be determined, but I’d like to hear from anyone who supports, opposes or has different ideas from the few discussed in this article, with a detailed explanation of their idea or position and why they believe it would or would not work. Contact me by email: wakatipuwhitetail@gmail.com. While not all ideas will be able to be taken up, the overall consensus may be, along with a bit of common sense. We pay up to $300 in vouchers for top stories. NZ Hunting & Wildlife 198 - Spring 2017 39
Page 1 and 2: Hunting NEW ZEALAND SPRING ISSUE 19
Page 3 and 4: Joshua Keen, Tahr, 3rd, G Jamie Fai
Page 5 and 6: Contents News and features Reports
Page 7 and 8: For the past 10 years Natex has pur
Page 9 and 10: Kirstie Wilson and Sue van den Bers
Page 11 and 12: Speech by Hon Peter Dunne, MP for
Page 13 and 14: Tale material produced a number of
Page 15 and 16: Keith Milne, "Purple Flower", 1st,
Page 17 and 18: Mandatory consultation As a statuto
Page 19 and 20: Joshua Keen, "Frosty Morning", 2nd,
Page 21 and 22: TREVOR CHAPPELL TROPHY - Wild sheep
Page 23 and 24: Game management Sika poised for Her
Page 25 and 26: forests at higher altitude within t
Page 27 and 28: Four management units A mixture of
Page 29 and 30: POWER & PRECISION FOR A DEVASTATING
Page 31 and 32: A closer look at Pete’s trophy. T
Page 33 and 34: Jack and Alfie’s first tahr hunt
Page 35 and 36: KIDS' PAGE Stephanie Waghorn (14) s
Page 37 and 38: the things that don’t go as well
Page 39: Game animal management Wakatipu whi
Page 43 and 44: “A change of tactics was called f
Page 45 and 46: World Benchrest Championships prepa
Page 47 and 48: for the Chinese. It could be argued
Page 49 and 50: The pathologist at work: Jim used e
Page 51 and 52: McCONACHIE TROPHY (chamois) & EGMON

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NZDA H&W 198 WEB