Hedgehogs and mustelids a big menace in the Mackenzie Basin (Timaru Herald)

Hedgehogs, ferrets and labrador-sized feral cats are some of the pests captured in the Mackenzie Basin.

By Matthew Littlewood, Timaru Herald

Hedgehogs, ferrets and labrador-sized feral cats are some of the pests captured in the Mackenzie Basin

Te Manahuna Aoraki, a multi-agency project with the aspiration of turning the Mackenzie Basin into a predator-free area in 20 years, has just released its trapping results which reveal it has caught more than 860 animals in the January to August period.

Of those, almost 350 hedgehogs and more than 300 mustelids – ferrets, stoats and weasels were trapped. Feral cats also made up a significant portion of captures with over 170 caught. The rest of the catches were rats and other predators.

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