Aerial Culling vs Hunting for Feral Animal Control

As a contract shooter and hunter, if there’s one thing I hear all the time it’s that hunters have a healthy dislike for the aerial culling of public areas where we have access to hunt, namely state forests in Victoria and NSW. 

In this article we are going to look at each side of the fence, and in the end, provide clarification and understanding as to why both hunting and aerial culling are essential for effective feral animal control.

For a quick bit of context, aerial culling and hunting are both wildlife management practices that are used to control animal populations. However, the effectiveness of each method depends on a variety of factors, including the species being targeted, the environment, and the specific feral animal control goals.

Aerial culling is typically used to manage large populations of feral animals over a large geographic area. It is an effective tool for reducing population numbers quickly and efficiently, particularly for species that are difficult to hunt on the ground, such as feral horses and camels. However, aerial culling can be controversial due to concerns about animal welfare and the potential for non-target species to be accidentally killed. These risks are largely mitigated by ensuring only certified, experienced professionals carry out the culling.

On the other hand, hunting is typically a more localised and selective approach to feral animal control. It is effective for controlling smaller populations of animals. Hunting also provides additional benefits, such as the ability to harvest animals for food and the generation of revenue through hunting fees and licences.

The key point in both of these methods is that hunters and cullers are two sides of the same coin for feral pest management.

Understandably, a sore point for deer hunters is they see deer in Australia as a game animal and not a feral pest, which is where most of the dislike for culling comes from. When you see deer as a game animal - as they are in many other countries - they are not something that needs to be controlled and should only be targeted for trophies and/or meat. Animals selected for harvesting will meet either or both of those criteria.

Culling, on the other hand, targets all animals of a select species as they are considered a pest due to being a non-native animal that has a detrimental impact on our native flora and fauna. Once an animal is classified as a pest, any and all animals should be taken in an effort to control their numbers.

In Australia, feral deer populations are growing exponentially each year, so it simply isn’t possible to control their numbers through hunting alone. While hunters certainly have a positive impact (many studies show this as fact) it isn’t enough to keep the numbers under reasonable control. When balanced with aerial culling, the numbers can be kept to reasonable levels while still allowing plenty of game for hunters who either want to harvest the meat or simply enjoy hunting.

Now, to raise a very touchy subject, we should absolutely be culling the feral brumbies in the Snowy Mountains area as they are obliterating the natural habitat and causing a real existential threat to many of our smaller endangered species. I understand us Aussies have a huge romantic appeal for these brumbies and yes, they are a huge part of our nation’s history, however, if we want to protect our unique wildlife, their numbers need to be dramatically reduced.

Perhaps that’s a topic for another day.