In 2003, the Minister of Conservation approved the Captive Management Policy for holding absolutely protected wildlife in captivity. The new policy identified categories for captive management broadly based on whether species were held in captivity for recovery or restoration purposes, advocacy, or for rehabilitation of injured animals. Holdings not meeting these criteria were proposed to be phased out through grandparenting.
It was noted at the time that there would be some implementation issues associated with common species held by private holders (namely native red and yellow crowned parakeets, and a number of commonly held lizard species) and that further work would be needed to address these.
The Department of Conservation has now released a discussion document that outlines a proposed framework for addressing these issues.
Submissions close on Saturday 31 January 2009
You can get the discussion document and other related documents on DOCs website here:
http://www.doc.govt.nz/getting-involved/consultations/current/protected-common-species-in-private-holdings/
