This weekend’s planned predator-control 1080 aerial drop by the Department of Conservation in the Makarora and Wilkin Valleys has been postponed until there is a "clear break in the weather".
Doc senior ranger Paul Hondelink said three to four days without wind or rain were needed for the operation to be a success and "we’re just not getting the right weather pattern".
Doc could not risk the possibility of rain as rats would not eat the bait if it was "sodden". The drop in the Makarora and Wilkin Valleys is the last operation for the southern South Island in the Government’s $20million "Battle for the Birds" national pest eradication programme, which began last winter.
The 38,500ha block is remote and can only be accessed by jet boat, aircraft or on foot. Five days before the start date all affected businesses and landowners would be contacted, Doc hut wardens notified and signs erected at walking track access points, Mr Hondelink said.
"Dropping 1080-laced cereal baits is the most effective tool we’ve got to eradicate pests over such a huge area and we know it works. We’re getting results back from other operations that have occurred already and not only have rat densities dropped off dramatically but the birds are coming back," he said.
