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Otago Daily Times

The wapiti exception

At first glance, the plan to grant wapiti deer special status in Fiordland National Park seems inappropriate. Wapiti damage the forest understorey through browsing. When deer, tahr, and goats proliferate unchecked, the destruction across forests, valleys, and alpine pastures becomes severe. Forest & Bird chief executive Nicola Toki said this week that the proposal to designate the wapiti as a herd of special interest (Hosi) amounts to the government "looking at changing the law to let a North American deer species use the national park as a glorified vege patch". She argued it was "eating away at the very natural heritage that these sanctuaries have been legally designed to protect. What next? A sanctuary for stoats?" The plan was catering to a handful of vested interests at the expense of all New Zealanders, she said. Ms Toki said Forest & Bird was baffled by the prioritisation of government time and energy into helping 512 hunters shoot 86 deer in a national park. Scepticism surrounding the move is heightened by widespread concerns about the government's alleged tendency to cater to vested interests, as well as Act New Zealand's connections to the gun and hunting lobbies. Cementing the place for a non-native species in a national park raises concerns, particularly given the National Park Act stipulates: "Introduced plants and animals shall as far as possible be exterminated." As a matter of principle, Forest & Bird would struggle to support the planned status for the wapiti. Last year, the organisation sought a judicial review of an agreement between the Department of Conservation and the Fiordland Wapiti Foundation, arguing that the agreement did not comply with the National Parks Act. The review has since been paused. Under the agreement, the foundation is permitted to manage a wapiti herd while undertaking pest control and other conservation efforts in the area. Whatever the concerns over principle and precedent, strong pragmatic and practical arguments support the Hosi designation and the government's parallel plan to amend the law, clarifying that a herd of special interest can be established in national parks. The foundation manages six back-country huts and more than 500 predator-control traps in the wapiti area. Its annual ballot attracts thousands of domestic and international hunters. Wapiti, known as elk overseas, were given to New Zealand by United States president Theodore Roosevelt in 1905. They have since interbred with red deer, and wapiti remain prized trophy animals. Ecologist Cam Speedy, who works with the foundation, said the wapiti efforts over 200,000ha of Fiordland had yielded positive outcomes for both the environment and hunters. Wapiti density was only two to four per hectare, the lowest deer density in almost all Fiordland. Combined with the pest control that Doc could never undertake, the environment and native birdlife were thriving, more so than in almost all the rest of the park. By harnessing hunters' energy, the initiative enhanced environmental, cultural, social, and economic values, Mr Speedy said. It is in the foundation's interests to maintain relatively low numbers and ensure healthy forests — an approach that ultimately improves the quality of the stags and their antlers. There are occasions when the Department of Conservation can collaborate with hunters to manage deer or tahr populations. More often, however, hunters alone cannot be relied upon to keep numbers sufficiently low, and the resulting ecological damage is serious and enduring. The Wapiti Foundation's efforts in Fiordland, now firmly established, represent an exception and should be regarded as such. Nevertheless, periodic reviews and independent monitoring could add another layer of long-term assurance. Wapiti could never be fully "exterminated" from the national park. Instead, a controlled approach has emerged, offering multiple benefits. Formally designating the population as a herd of special interest should help secure these advantages.