Efficacy and Animal Welfare Impacts of Novel Capture Methods for Two Species of Invasive Wild Mammals in New Zealand

摘要

The animal welfare impacts of wildlife capture methods are an important contemporary issue in conservation. We assessed novel methods for capturing Bennett’s wallabies ( ) and red deer ( ), both invasive mammals in New Zealand. The methods assessed were helicopter net-gunning for both species, versus ground-based netting for wallabies and helicopter darting for deer. We quantified efficacy, duration of procedures, frequency of adverse events, and cost-effectiveness for each method. We discuss the benefits of our approach for assessing new wildlife capture methods.