Pest control operations at Mt Cargill following an outbreak of bovine Tb will be suspended over the holiday period.
Earlier this month, Ospri confirmed three herds of cattle and deer had been identified as infected with Tb.
It was aware the Mt Cargill Reserve was a popular recreational area which people might want to visit over the Christmas break, South Island relationship manager Danny Templeman said.
There would be no toxin or set traps in the area over that period so the public should feel comfortable using the area, Mr Templeman said.
Swift action had been taken to determine the cause of the infection with pest control and wildlife survey work under way.
About 60%, or about 1300, of the ground-laid traps involved on initial survey had been completed. Traps were checked every day and any captured possums were collected for further investigation.
More than 920 possums had been captured to date and eight had shown lesions symptomatic of a Tb infection and would undergo further testing. Laboratory results would determine whether the lesion was due to bovine Tb.
DNA strain typing would be undertaken to help ‘‘form a picture'' on where the disease had come from geographically, Mr Templeman said.
The operation would resume from January 5 and the public would need to adhere to warning signs at all major entry points. The initial survey was scheduled to be completed by the end of January.
