A “search and destroy” wallaby eradication programme has eliminated "thousands" of the animals as in its first year of operation. Environment Canterbury wallaby programme leader Brent Glentworth said the National Wallaby Eradication Programme (NWEP), which began with $27.4 million funding for 2020-2024, had already covered more than 320,000 hectares of the Canterbury high country. “A search and destroy programme of this nature and scale is a historic first for New Zealand,'' Glentworth said. Ecan figures reveal that between 1997 and 2021 there were 1851 reports of wallabies outside the containment area with 1254 destroyed. “We predict the final number in 2021 to exceed 500 reports outside the containment area, which is expected with the change in delivery through the programme.

Source: Stuff September 22, 2021 04:07 UTC