RABBIT DESTRUCTION

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 28, 23 September 1946, Page 3

RABBIT DESTRUCTION

PONGAKAWA BOARD AREA INSPECTOR’S REPORT 'At the last meeting of the Pongakawa Rabbit Board, the Inspector, Mr C. H. Davis, reported that during the month work had been carried out on a number of private properties together with Crown Lands in Valley Road, Rerewhakaitu Coast and Edgecumbe areas, and Native lands in Paengaroa, Edgecumbe, Rerewhakaitu, Awakaponga and Lakes areas.

A total of 12,430 acres had been poisoned and 12,520 acres fumigated. More settled weather had shown better results from the poisoning. The Otamarakau Valley and down the coast to the end of Shearer’s property had been finished, and this country was now in clean condition with very few rabbits to be found on any of the properties. The report continued as follows:

‘As rabbits become scarcer there is a reluctance with some ratepayers to make country available for poisoning. I would point out that where there is cover adjoining grass paddocks, it is almost impossible to destroy all the rabbits in these areas without poison. The majority of the rabbits make for this cover and the rabbiter may have to spend hours destroying one or two rabbits, with dogs,. and leaving many others behind that have to be destroyed on some future occasion. With poison, it is possible to destroy most of these rabbits with less than onequarter of the cost of dogging and fumigating methods.

In conclusion, I would like to thank these ratepayers who are helping by putting camps at our disposal and going out of their way to assist in our work.”