Hello, welcome back to my blog. For science again, we are talking about conservation. How can we protect habitats and ecosystems from serious harm? Humans can reduce deforestation; everyone in the world can help with ocean management to lower fishing grounds, and we can replace our fossil fuels with renewable energy.
Can the government or major groups help protect animals that live there? Yes, governmental organisations and major groups can play a significant role in protecting animals and their habitats. They can put policies in place, enforce laws against poaching, and create protected areas.
Legal Protection—Wildlife Act 1953
The Wildlife Act is the main law that helps protect animals classed as wildlife, including some of New Zealand’s most endangered species.
The Act does this by controlling how people interact with wildlife.
It protects them in three ways
- Absolute protection
- Varying protection
- No protection
Absolutely Protected Wildlife—
If an animal is ‘absolutely protected,’ it means that without a permit from DOC, it’s an offense to:
catch, hunt or kill it
buy, sell or own it
hold it in captivity
release it
export it.
The protection applies whether the animal is alive or dead and to all or parts of it, for example, feathers, skin, bones, and eggs.
Examples of Protected animals
- Māui Dolphins
- New Zealand Fur Seals
- New Zealand Sea Lions
- Kiwis
- Northern Royal Albatross
Some wildlife species are protected, but not absolutely. They may be killed in specific circumstances. These species are listed in schedules within the Act.
- Game hunting during hunting season. Hunters must have a special licence.
- Hunted because they are destroying land and other habitats.
- Hunted with a special cause: Māori can hunt muttonbirds but only in special circumstances.
Some of these unprotected wildlife species cause harm; for example:
- Predators on threatened native species, for example, stoats, feral cats, and hedgehogs
- Eating native plants, for example, wallabies
- Causing damage to farms or orchards, for example, possums, Canada geese, rooks, or to people’s homes, for example, rats, mice
- Causing risk to people’s safety through bird strikes at airports, for example, the spur-winged plover, black-backed gulls
These can all be killed under these conditions only.