OBSERVATIONS ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SHOOTING FERAL PIGS FROM HELICOPTERS

The use of helicopters for the shooting of feral pigs in western New S outh Wales has become increasingly popular and widespread. Studies wer e conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of this practice in terms of population reduction, rate of population recovery and cost. The study site was an area of 120 km2 on the southern edge of the Macquarie Mar shes. Estimated population reductions, calculated by the index-removal method, over two consecutive years were 80 and 65%. The associated ra te of increase (r) in the 12 months following the first population red uction was 1.34, which is equivalent to a recovery of 77% in numbers. Results and levels of control inputs were collated for an additional c onsecutive year and compared with other studies. Management implicatio ns from this study are also considered.