More than 150 remote predator traps set to protect native species in Mt Aspiring National Park have been systematically tampered with, the Department of Conservation (DOC) says.

In early January, high trapping lines between Dart Valley and the west Matukituki Valley were checked by Matukituki Charitable Trust volunteers and Southern Lakes Sanctuary staff, who found the entrances to all 45 traps blocked off by strategically placed rocks.

Staff have since found all the traps from Shelter Rock Hut to Dart Hut and down the Rees Valley have also been triggered or had rocks placed in front of their doors.

“This means someone has made the effort to disarm more than 150 remote traps in total across two locations,” DOC Whakatipu operations manager David Butt said.

At this time of the year this line of traps catches numerous predators, including stoats, he said.

“This is a critical time to have protection for native species through trapping. The people who have done this to the traps will be responsible for an increase in the death of many individuals from our taonga species.”  

An introduced species, stoats are the number one killer of many of New Zealand’s endangered native species.

“We have a team of hardworking DOC rangers, Southern Lakes Sanctuary staff and volunteers who put in a lot of hard graft to ensure our trapping network is effective,” David said.

“It is very concerning [that] someone – or potentially several people - covered challenging terrain and clambered through bush to find these traps and block them off so predators cannot enter. It means we will see an increase in predators.”

DOC’s Takahē Recovery Group is working to establish a new population of the birds on and around Tititea Mt Aspiring.

There are concerns those birds will be at risk if traps in the area are found to be compromised as well, DOC said.

Trapping is considered a humane method of removing introduced predators from national parks to protect native birds, lizards, and invertebrates.

DOC has urged anyone with any information about the traps that have been targeted to call 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468).

PHOTO: Supplied