ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 272, 11 August 1921, Page 6

ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY

KILLIN& OF GAME BIRDS BY HAWKS. The council of the Acclimatisation Society met last night, Mr. E. F. C. Wiflin presiding. The game birds of Nqw Zealand, both imported and native, are disappearing at an alarming rate, and the Auckland Acclimatisation Society expressed the opinion in a letter to the Wellington Society last night that the greatest single cause of this unfortunate result is the prevalence of vast numbers of hawks all ovqr New Zealand. They had collected much evidence on tho subject, and suggested that all societies should combine. About three years ago the* Auckland Society paid sixpence per head for hawks, and the destruction of no fewer than 13,060 resulted. The result was immediately apparent by the large increase of pheasants, and this increase was reflected in an encouraging increase in the annua] number of licenses taken out. The Auckland Society was unable to continue this policy owing to the heavy financial cost, and soon the district was again swarming with hawks. This year the society was offering a bonus of 3d. per pair of feet. Mr. R. V. Sandei'son, an honorary ranger of the Wellington Society, also wrote on the subject of hawks. He mentioned that they were very numeroqs in the Wairarapa district, and ho said that > tbev invariably killed young pheasants and hens. In the WFirarapa district there was an excess of cock birds, due to the fact that they generally put up a fight against the hawk The chairman mentioned that in Canterbury carcasses poisoned by means of strychnine were placed' on haystacks, and thousands of hawks were killed.

Members thought that something should bo done to kill the 'hawks, and it was decided to offer a bonus of 3d. per pair of feet, and to get ths ranger to endeavour to organise farmers to kill rthe hawks by means of the poisoned carcass and haystack. The curator reported that he would be ready for distribution from the hatchery as soon as the weather cleared. The Pahiatiia Sub-district Society wrote stating that at the annual meeting of the society it had been decided to make a determined effort to improve fishing in the district. They had discussed the matter and decided that the main causes of the falling off in fishing were unscientific distribution of fry, poaching, and illegal killing, and increase in worm fishing. Tile meeting recommended that worm-fishing be prohibited in the Mmigatainoka River, nnd in the Makakahi. As all the conditions are now gazetted this recommendation will not ccme up for consideration until next year.