{"id":39771,"date":"2024-07-05T15:04:34","date_gmt":"2024-07-05T13:04:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/3f5ba371-1319-4b56-9ca5-b264f6552e5e"},"modified":"2024-07-05T16:28:41","modified_gmt":"2024-07-05T14:28:41","slug":"new-zealands-annual-cat-killing-competition-condemned-after-record-death-toll","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/new-zealands-annual-cat-killing-competition-condemned-after-record-death-toll\/","title":{"rendered":"New Zealand\u2019s annual cat-killing competition condemned after record death toll"},"content":{"rendered":"

A total of 371 cats were shot, along with a range of other non-native wild and domestic animal species that are considered a threat to native wildlife. <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Friday, 05 July 2024 at 13:04 PM<\/p>

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A contest in New Zealand to kill feral domestic cats has provoked worldwide condemnation.<\/strong><\/p>

The annual North Canterbury Hunting Competition, held in the northern part of South Island at the end of June, offered cash prizes for individuals to cull a range of non-native wild and domestic species, including deer, pigs, hares<\/a>, rabbits and even wallabies and possums, as well as cats.<\/p>

According to its\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0page, a total of 371 cats were trapped, identified as being feral and then shot.\u00a0<\/p>

Animal welfare groups criticised the hunt organisers for creating a category for children, saying this had nothing to do with conservation.<\/p>

But New Zealand\u2019s\u00a0Department of Conservation<\/a>\u00a0(DoC) has told BBC Wildlife<\/em> that feral cats have a major impact on the environment. \u201cThe control of feral cats through this competition will benefit native wildlife,\u201d says landscape threats science manager Clayson Howell. \u201cAs cats can roam very large distances, this control effort may reduce cat density on adjacent public conservation land.\u201d<\/p>

The DoC says it manages feral cats in areas where they pose a \u201csignificant threat\u201d to native species.<\/p>

These areas include Arthur\u2019s Pass National Park and Lake Sumner Forest Park (both in the Canterbury region) to protect the orange-fronted parakeet, also known as the k\u0101k\u0101riki karaka, and on Stewart Island (Rakiura) at the bottom end of South Island to protect the New Zealand dotterel or pukunui.<\/p>

Cats also feed on native lizards, bats and the endemic large flightless crickets known as w\u0113t\u0101. They can harbour the parasite\u00a0Toxoplasma gondii<\/em>, and when their faeces wash into the sea in water runoff, it can cause the deaths of both Hector\u2019s and Critically Endangered M\u0101ui dolphins.<\/p>