BUSH VERMIN

Hokitika Guardian, 20 August 1929, Page 6

BUSH VERMIN

1 HOW CAN THEY BE EXTER-

MTNATED ?

WELLINGTON, August 16.*

'When commenting at last night’s meeting of the Wellington Acclimatisation Society on the necessity of killing forest vermin, Mr L. 0. 11. Tripp (president) suggested the employment off • man on one of the society’s reserves to reduce the stoats and weasels. In thi< connection he had written to Mr Edgar Stead, the well-known naturalist, for his opinions and a reply had been received which read as follows:

“As for putting a man into the bush to trap vermin, I do not think i' would have'any effect whatever. The whole experience of game-keeping in Great Britain indicates that it is necessary to trap persistently and closely over the whole of large areas in order to keep down the numbers of such things as rats and stoats. I think there are very* few people who realise what enormous numbers of stoats and rats there are in New Zealand. I have no doubt whatever that both the black rats and stoats exist here in millions. ' Neither dogs nor cats, nor both together, will keep these verfnin awy I keep two spaniels, and my gardener has one, and yet there are always black rats in the creepers round .'my house, and stoats within 50 yards of it. If you want to get some idea of the numbers of rats and stoats in the country, have a look at their footprints in the freshly falling snow, or in the mud along the banks of streams.”

Lieutenant-Commander Robbe, ,of the French warship Tourville, who spent a week-end in Taranaki, had a close connection with the province during the war, inasmuch as lie was responsible for the saving of some of its citizens who were aboard the Marquette when that ill-fated transport was in October, 1915, torpedoed in the Mediterranean on its way from Alexandria to Salonika (says the “News’”'. A whole base hospital staff was being transferred, and amongst the members were Dr Wylie rnd Nurses Hooker and Sinclair, all of New Plymouth. Unfortunately the last-named was drowned, and Nurse Hooker was only saved after being in the icy water for ten hours. Commander Robbe and his crew managed to save 200 of the and crew; the drowned numbered 99.

“With a view t‘o minimising the menace to trout and making a commercial use of eels, I am prepared to catch 50 or 100 tons of eels, and deliver them at the Waingawa Freezing Works for 2£d per lb live weight, in quantities of not less than one ton per day,” said r a letter from Mr J. B. Yl’Kenzie, of Masterton, which roused a lively discussion at the meeting of the Wellington Acclimatisation Society, says the “Post.” Some members doubted the possibility of securing such numbers of eels, but others stated that at times it was not possible to walk across the outlet of Lake Wairarapa to the sea without walking on eels, and that the supplies were plentiful enough for the offer to be carried out. It was stated that the market for eels in Europe was not so good ns formerly, but it was decided to refer the matter to the Fish Committee. Tor investigation, the Chief Inspector of Fisheries (Mr A. E. Hefford) to be consulted in the matter. Opinion was divided as to the extent to which eels were a menace to trout, but all agreed that they were inimical. Not long ago the society resolved to spend £2OO towards lessening the numbers in' the district.