DoC’s acting wild animals manager, Mark Ryan, said the department was aware of the ongoing deer issue. “Under the Wild Animal Control Act 1977, [DoC] is responsible for managing populations of wild animals at priority conservation sites on public conservation land,” he said. Whanganui District Council regulatory and compliance operations manager Jason Shailer said the animal management team only responded to reports of wild deer if the animals were creating a traffic hazard. “However, managing wild deer on private property is outside the council’s jurisdiction,” Shailer said. Delhi Village resident Richard Thompson said he had requested that Horizons schedule deer as a pest in Whanganui so it could undertake pest control.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 08, 2026 23:03 UTC