Sydney, March 3
Australia's New South Wales (NSW) has shifted the method of managing the number of wild horses at Kosciuszko National Park following the culling of thousands of brumbies through aerial shooting.
The use of aerial shooting is no longer necessary, NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe told a budget estimates hearing on Monday. The wild horse population is being controlled due to fears that they are endangering certain rare and native species.
Launched in late 2021, the wild horse management initiative seeks to lower the brumbies population in the area to 3,000 by mid-2027 to safeguard the delicate mountain ecosystem and the heritage value of the brumby.
In late 2023, aerial shooting was introduced as an additional strategy to help reduce the feral horse population. Reliable estimates suggested that more than 17,000 horses remained there. Early findings from the 2024 survey, however, indicated a significant decline in horse numbers, which is currently in the range of 3,000 to 4,000.
Aerial shooting had paused for the time being in Kosciuszko National Park but could be reinstated if needed and remains in use elsewhere in NSW, Sharpe said.