Himalayan Tahr Control Operational Plan 2023/24
The 2023/24 Plan has been released and can be found here. The Game Animal Council’s advice to the Department provided as part of the Tahr Plan Implementation Liaison Group process is available here.
The GAC is to be involved in a midpoint review of the 2023/24 plan and its effectiveness.
Maps from tahr surveys
DOC are publishing maps showing areas where large groups of tahr have recently been observed in popular hunting areas. The maps also show where mature bull tahr outside the National Parks were sighted and may prove useful to tahr hunters planning their next trip. These observations were recorded as part of tahr population surveys and are available here.
MU1 Hunter-led Management Project
For the last two years significant work has been going into progressing the opportunity for hunter-led tahr management in Himalayan Tahr Management Unit 1 (MU1). MU1 encompasses parts of the Rakaia, Ashburton and Rangitata catchments. This is an iterative process aimed at establishing a community agreement or similar between the hunting sector and DOC, similar to what is working so well for wapiti in Fiordland. The agreement will provide for hunter-led management of tahr in MU1 with the goal to encourage a more male-biased herd, producing better quality animals in a more resilient environment.
The programme will also collaborate with DOC on vegetation monitoring, reduce the breeding capacity of the herd by targeting females and large nanny groups, share tahr location information and hunting opportunities to facilitate management by hunters, identify the best management tools to be used at each location, provide avenues for people to learn more about and participate in tahr hunting, prioritise the recovery of meat where practical and cooperate with adjoining landowners