Tuesday,
29 January 2019, 3:52 pm
Press Release: Wellington Fish and
Game
Rare
birds found ensnared in a fishing net at Lake Wairarapa last week were lucky to
be released unscathed thanks to some prompt action by Wellington Fish &
Game staff.
The three
rare Little Black Shags were spotted by a member of the public walking his dog
at Lake Domain on the northern shore of Lake Wairarapa.
The
Department of Conservation (DOC) didn’t have appropriately qualified staff
available so local Fish & Game staff raced to the rescue. The birds were
cut free and they swam away.
While
Wellington Fish & Game’s jurisdiction centres around game birds, manager
Phil Teal says his organisation is happy to help out DOC and iwi when it can.
“Lake
Wairarapa is a hub for our waterfowl species, and the game bird hunting
tradition there is well over a century old and runs through four or five
generations.
“As such,
we do a lot of work down there and regularly have staff around monitoring
waterfowl populations, enhancing the wetlands and working on water reticulation
to improve water quality before it enters the lake.
“It’s
good that staff can help out in this way – we’ve always pointed out the work we
do benefits not just game birds and hunters but native species too; I guess
this a very tangible example of that.”
Mr Teal
says the rescue highlights the need for vigilance around set nets.
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