Report of Representative on National Parks Authority.

The status of the takahe in the Fiordland National Park and the question of banding birds was discussed by the authority.

It was reported by officers of the Department of Internal Affairs that there had been little change in the numbers of takahe during the period that studies of the birds had been carried out. There was no direct evidence concerning depredation by stoats. Further discussion is awaiting a report from the Department.

The Authority approved of 29,900 acres of the Arthur Pass National Park being set aside as a Wilderness Area. Roads may not be made nor huts built in a Wilderness Area. In the Taraiua National Forest Park all licences for cutting timber had expired.

Abel Tasman National Park. In March of this year the Authority (six members present) made an inspection of this Park. The northern portion between Wainui Inlet and Totaranui was traversed by motor. The road passes through decomposed granite country, and the unstable foundation has been the cause of several slips, so that a good deal of improvement is required to make it suitable for much motor traffic. The eastern coast of the Park was inspected from a motor launch.

Proposed National Park in Lake Rototti Region It is proposed to declare the catchment areas of Lakes Rotoiti and Rotoroa a national park. In order to appreciate the suitability of the area for a national park the Authority visited both lakes on March 22. The proposed park area includes 747,000 acres of forest, 315,000 acres of mountain tops, mostly grassland, and 152,000 acres of non-forested valley lands largely unsuitable for farming. The area of the two lakes to be included in the proposed park is 26,000 acres.

Noxious Animals in National Parks. Reports communicated by the Secretary for Internal Affairs on mustelids, tahr and chamois show that stoats have been in the Fiordland National Park for a considerable period. They were reported by Richard Henry on Resolution Island in 1901. Stoats were seen in all parts of the park visited by officers of the Department It was thought that the decline in the number of ground birds could in part be attributed to stoats. Chamois were not a serious threat in the Mount Cook region, while in the Arthur Pass National Park they can with little difficulty be maintained at a low level. The tahr population in the Mount Cook Park has recently been drastically reduced. In four months in 1955 2,366 animals were destroyed.

W. R. B. Oliver