Captive Management Approved Policy Summary

New policy on holding absolutely protected wildlife in captivity

September 2003

The Minister of Conservation has recently made decisions on the policy for holding absolutely protected wildlife (ref: Wildlife Act 1953) in captivity. Absolutely protected wildlife may be held in captivity only where there is a clear benefit for conservation, either direct or indirect.

Captive management for direct conservation benefit (Category 1).

Absolutely protected wildlife may be held for:

• Recovery of threatened species where this is a priority action for the long term conservation of a threatened species in its natural habitats.

Species held for recovery can be displayed for advocacy purposes where: they are held in facilities accessible to the public; display is consistent with recovery programme requirements; and, where facilities and programmes meet appropriate standards for advocacy.

• Restoration of ecosystems where the Department has identified a need for the introduction of absolutely protected wildlife to ecosystems to enable their full recovery to natural condition and processes.

Captive management for indirect conservation benefit (Category 2).

Absolutely protected wildlife may be held for:

• Animal rehabilitation. Absolutely protected wildlife can be held for strictly time limited periods and either released, or euthanased at the end of this period, or kept for longer periods as part of approved species recovery programmes.
  
• Display of wildlife for conservation advocacy:
  
  • short term: advocacy based displays will be approved only where there is a clear benefit to conservation through holding animals in captivity.
    
  • long term: conservation advocacy using protected species on display to occur in more natural habitats, rather than in artificial environments and only where there is a clear benefit to conservation.
    
• Export of protected wildlife. Absolutely protected wildlife can only be exported where it is demonstrated that this will improve the conservation of a species

Implementation

• New guidelines for authorising species recovery-based captive management will be completed by DOC (BRU) and released within 3 months of policy release.
• DOC will work with the Conservation Management Advisory Group (CMaG) to develop guidelines for authorising advocacy-based captive management within 12 months.
• All captive management applications and facilities must demonstrate that they meet minimum standards for animal welfare contained in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Code of Recommendations for the Welfare of Exhibit Animals.
• All applications will be considered under new guidelines when these have been completed and released.
• All existing permits will be reviewed by Conservancies against the new policy and guidelines at their next review date.
• Conservancies will establish review dates for any permits where no review process or date is outlined.
• Facilities and collections which do not meet new policy and guidelines will be phased out through discontinuing of any breeding from, or additions to, existing collections, and natural death of existing animals.
• DOC will initiate consultation within 3 months of policy release on long term policy for use of species for conservation advocacy in more natural settings.

Implications

• All applicants and current facilities or holders of absolutely protected wildlife are affected by the new policy decisions. All applications and collections, including private collections, must meet the new policy and guidelines for contributing to recovery, restoration, rehabilitation or advocacy. This may result in a number of private collections particularly, not meeting policy requirements.
• For existing collections which don't meet new policy the general approach will be to require these to undertake activities to meet the new requirements. If this cannot be done, collections will be phased out through grandparenting. This will include natural death of existing populations and no breeding from or additions to these, as outlined above.
• Common parakeets and lizards are included in the policy coverage. These species were initially excluded when proposals were developed in 1999 however they are included now to ensure consistency across all absolutely protected wildlife. The operational implications of the new policy for the large number of collections of common lizards and parakeets will be worked through over the next 12 months.

Further information

Please contact your local DOC office for more information on this policy, or for an application to hold protected wildlife in captivity.

back to top