[Mildred]

Well it took some doing persuading our eleven year old son to want to go to NZ. Well an evening spent with Denise's family and Wayne and Trudy really made him really all geared up to go

BUT

the subject of Possoms came up :uhoh

George is very into animal rights, tells the kids off at school if they even stamp on a worm, god help the ones who pull the legs off crane flies. Last year we drove passed a hunt and he wanted to storm into the middle of it and give them a lecture - he was 10 at the time :?

Well, how big an issue is the hating possoms in NZ? Has anyone else had problems with this? I think if George knew he would refuse to get on any plane heading for NZ.

[eric_amanda]

Possom control is really BIG here. Authorities are regularly closing large sections of forest for large pest control sessions. :?

It seems they are rather a hated creature, especially for those Orchardists.

They have a few methods of 'killing' them, but poisoned bate and the Timms trap (catches possum by head and kills it) seem to be the most popular.

There are then those who cash in on this and sell the fur for profit - which again seems quite big and they regularly advertise in our local press that they collect dead possoms for free :wah

It seems the Possum has a lot to answer for, decreasing numbers of the native kiwi seem to be because in part blamed on uncontrollable numbers of possums. :(

Oh and it seems our lemon tree is begining to suffer again, it appears Mr Possom has been back for this years fruit!! :wah

Not sure of the possoms breading habits, although we were told that if we have one possom, then we certainly have a few more! Perhaps someone else can enlighten us. ;)

Amanda

[veronica]

might help to explain to him about the ecology suffering from the possums and about how they are destroying the natural wildlife., eating the eggs and causing some of the native birds to become close to extincton. Better still don't tell him anything as he will see the rights and wrongs of it clearer once he is here.

[GeorgeM]

You certainly wouldn't want to do anything to encourage possums (or should that be possa? ;) ) in NZ - they have no natural preditors and can be a huge problem for the local eco system.

As well as the damage to bird life I also understand that they destroy huge areas of forest as well - I believe that they nibble the bark off certain types of trees which then die.

From talking to NZ friends I understand that having a possum in the house, especially if it gets in when you're not there, is not a pleasant thing to clean up after.

We've been visited from time to time by one or two but they haven't been much of a pest to us fortunately - perhaps our dog and cat scare them away before they can get up to any damage.

They move quite slowly and you see a lot of them squashed on the road. I've heard it said that many NZ drivers will swerve to get them so great is their hatred for them. Although I agree that they're a pest I've never been able to bring myself to do that, big softy that I am.

[Mildred]

Although I agree that they're a pest I've never been able to bring myself to do that, big softy that I am.

Perhaps its because you are another George!

Thank you to everyone who has enlightened us a bit more about this subject.

Must admit though, I'm not comfortable with the trapping method. This was made illegal years ago in the UK.

[sarahw]

I work for an environmental charity, centred on species protection, in habitat protection where we fund community groups who do environmental restoration and species protection work across NZ.

If your son saw what a possum could do to a kiwi (endangered species) then I think he might think twice about his views on pest erradication. Most projects that we fund include pest erradication because without it the endangered species would simply die out and the projects be pointless. Possums are a real problem here. Some of our projects have now got to the stage where some islands are or are nearly possum, stoat and rat free - the bird and plant life is flourishing! They cause problems with endemic trees too - stripping down the trunks of young saplings.

Kiwi populations in very recent years have started to slowly recover in Northland (their main habitat) - and this is mainly down to pest erradication in areas where they are.

Possums are not endemic to NZ - they were introduced (someone brought them here whether intentional or not) - as such they don't have natural predators because they didn't evolve in NZ alongside the other species here. Seeing as NZ has such a wonderful and unique aray of birds which came about beacuse there were no mustelids to predate them - they have evolved with no way to defend themselves against possums, stoats, rats etc. - the kiwi is a flightless bird with the young being particularly vulnerable.

Possums fur items are sold in shops - although I wouldn't encourage the purchase of these goods - by creating a market and demand for these, it is in some people's interest to keep that market going - i.e. breeding - which totally contradicts the whole reason for trapping.

Also - there are humane ways of trapping (I know that killing an animal isn't regarded as humane at all by some and I won't go into my views on this) - I've seen the Dept of Conservation traps (they will only approve traps that give instant kill and don't have the possiblity for the animal to be lying in pain for any amount of time) in action & believe me the animal wouldn't know what had happened - they're exceedingly quick and accurate.

If your son is an animal lover then feel free to PM me for more information of all the great things going on here to protect endangered species & on all the great wildlife too as there are so many exciting species here such as wetas, dolphins, penguins, sharks, fish, birds, stick insects etc. that you may not see elsewhere in the world & although he might not agree with the possum thing - he should definitely not burn his bridges with regards to missing out on all the other wonderful wildlife on offer... for example 15 minutes out of Wellington centre went for a walk on a beach & there were about 40 seals the other day - just lying there on the rocks - you could go as close as you dared & take photos!! What an amazing (and free) experience! We also get dolphins & the occasional orca (and a friend saw a shark a couple of months ago - on the beach we swim in :eek)

We also have something called Enviroschools which are environmentally friendly run schools - they teach kids environmental studies & the way of running the school is - maybe if you're going to an area which has an enviroschool you could look into this for him as it sounds like it might be up his street. I have had first-hand contact with some of these schools and my colleague is involved with environmental education & they are truly inspirational.

http://www.enviroschools.org.nz/

[Carol]

great post Sarah!
:nice1

[Mildred]

Gosh Sarah

What an indepth and interesting post. George is getting ready for school at the moment, but when he's got a minute I'll let him read this post and the attached links.

Really appreciate the time and effort you've spent here and my thanks to everyone else as well.

[jo b]

Wow Sarah, your work sound very interesting.

Even I would like to know more :nice1

On a lighter note we have our own forum possum eradicator namely Alijax :laugh :laugh

Jo

[AliJax]

Think of the Pink Panther Theme.........

der dum.......der dum......der dum.....der dum..der dum..der dum
der duuuuummmmm der dumbdee dum ! :laugh :laugh :laugh

[Simon & Emily]

We also get dolphins & the occasional orca (and a friend saw a shark a couple of months ago - on the beach we swim in :eek)


Sarah - what a great post - thanks for all the info.

Just a quick question though - and sorry to hi-jack the thread - but does NZ get many sharks around the coast (and I'm asking about those who like a human lunch, not the small ones :uhoh )? I know shark attacks get a lot of hype, but it's something my son asked me yesterday, and it set me thinking ......

Emily

[Moorf]

I was thinking of this post when I watched Close Up on telly tonight where they showed the Dept of Conservation shooting deer from helicopters and on foot. This is pest control. However, I believe the Kiwi's are quite partial to hunting - indeed a Kiwi friend here is setting up hunting tours for tourists coming over from the States such is its popularity. They'll be hunting red and fallow deer, wapiti, whitetail deer, wild-ram, wild boar, wild goat and something called a tar (sp?).

Not sure how the Kiwi's in general feel about hunting for pleasure, all I know is that those that I have spoken to about it don't seem to batt an eyelid at the subject.

[Mildred]

So Bambi and Skippy wouldn't have stood a chance then :(

[Moorf]

:no But they do taste nice ;)

[wayne]

I 'm afraid the hunting side of things appeals to me , I was bought up hunting rabbit ,pigeons,duck or whatever the season was, BUT and its a big BUT we ate what we hunted with the exception of foxes and vermin,
I was the only twelve year old that was given a shot gun for Xmas in our school.
Now I havent hunted for 15 years or so , we have kept the skill in though both Trudy and I are competent archers, and I have done a fair bit of clay pigeon shooting
With New Zealands relaxed gun laws I anticipate taking up target shooting and continuing archery( did you know its illegal to hunt wild animals in the UK with a bow and arrow?? but not in NZ)
I may get involved in hunting but not for sport just for pest control ,
Most hunters are responsible people and do not let any animals suffer , a clean quick kill is what is desired unlike fishing which can be far more traumatic to the qarry being dragged along by its jaw only to be thrown back injuted and unlikely to feed itself,
I'm sorry if what I've posted offends some of you but I was bought up by a hunting /country type family and thats the way it is

[Simon & Emily]

Wayne - I have to agree with you. I think many people were brought up here in the UK with 'huntin, fishin and shootin' as normal, but as times have changed feel that their activities and sports have been taken away from them. It's now more acceptable to get legless in a pub and then go and beat up some innocent by-stander than it is to get out a gun and shoot vermin. Lets hope that NZ continues to allow people to get on with whatever sport they want, be it an outdoor sport or sat inside a pub getting rat-*****. (as long as no violence follows ;) )

Emily

[Moorf]

One thing the Dept of Conservation guy that was hunting deer said was that they give away the venison and don't keep it for themselves so that the public don't think they're "gaining" by doing what they do.

Our neighbours hunt and they too were very keen to point out that they eat what they kill (within reason).

[nessie]

Yum (http://www.pukekura.co.nz/possum/index.htm):P

they give away the venison
:clap Where from?

F

[Moorf]

I have to admit, they didn't say WHERE the venison went from their deer hunts! :? They just said they give it away! Their moms? :laugh

[nessie]

D'oh :laugh

F

[miep]

I think possums are v cute to look at but aside from all the reasons already mentioned here, they also carry Tb. That is the main reason there is a lot of money being spent eradicating the little creatures.
They infect cows and deer which is obviously not good for business and farmers pay to have them controlled.
Wild pigs, deer, stoats and ferrets are also carriers and hunters have to know to look for the signs before they eat their catch. Information on this can be found on your local regional council website.

Yes, hunting seems a totally accepted pastime here and it took us a while to get used to that idea. I have to admit that I rarely say no to a nice cut of wild pork. ;) OK, I admit it I'm a total hypocrite :uhoh

:cheers Miep