Wildlife Act 1953

General provisions

53: Director-General may authorise taking or killing of wildlife for certain purposes

You could also call this:

"When can the government let people catch or kill protected animals in New Zealand?"

The Director-General can give permission to catch or kill wildlife for certain reasons. You might need permission to catch or kill animals that are protected. The Director-General can give this permission to specific people. The Director-General can also give permission to take eggs from wildlife or game for certain purposes, such as scientific research or to rear the animals. The permission can include conditions, such as how the animals can be caught or killed, where they can be taken, and what happens to them after they are caught.

The Director-General can give permission to a Fish and Game Council, and the council can exercise the powers given to it. If you are given permission, you must follow the conditions, or you might commit an offence against the Act, and you can be liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 67F(5). The Director-General can impose conditions on the permission, such as how the animals are kept or what plants are planted near their enclosures. The permission can also include conditions about inspecting the animals or their enclosures.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM277890.


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53A: Authority may be granted under section 53 to kill wildlife incidentally, or

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Part 5General provisions

53Director-General may authorise taking or killing of wildlife for certain purposes

  1. The Director-General may from time to time in writing authorise any specified person to catch alive or kill for any purpose approved by the Director-General any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or any game or any other species of wildlife the hunting or killing of which is not for the time being permitted.

  2. The Director-General may from time to time in writing authorise any specified person—

  3. to catch alive or otherwise obtain alive any absolutely protected or partially protected wildlife or any game or any other species of wildlife the taking of which is not for the time being permitted; or
    1. to take or otherwise obtain the eggs of any such wildlife or game, for the purpose of distributing or exchanging the same in any other country or in some other part of New Zealand, or for any scientific or other purpose approved by the Director-General, or for the purpose of rearing any such wildlife or game, or for the purpose of hatching any such eggs and of rearing any progeny arising from that hatching,—
      1. and may in any such authority authorise the holder to have any such wildlife or game or eggs or progeny in his or her or its possession for any of the purposes specified in this subsection, and may in any such authority authorise the holder to liberate any such wildlife or game or progeny in such area and during such period as may be specified in the authority.

      2. The Director-General may give to any Fish and Game Council any written authority that may be given under subsection (1) or subsection (2) in respect of game.

      3. Where any such authority is given to a Fish and Game Council, the powers that may be exercised by the Council pursuant to that authority may be exercised on its behalf by any officer or employee of the Council or by any other person authorised in writing by the Council.

      4. Any authority granted under any of the foregoing provisions of this section may contain such conditions as the Director-General may impose. Without limiting the general power of the Director-General to impose any conditions, the Director-General may in any such authority impose all or any of the following conditions:

      5. prescribing the means by which any such wildlife or game or eggs may be caught or killed or taken:
        1. prescribing the areas in which any such wildlife or game or eggs may be caught or killed or taken:
          1. providing for the sale or other disposal of any such wildlife or game or eggs:
            1. prescribing the duration of the authority:
              1. providing for the revocation of the authority and for the issue of any other authority in its place:
                1. providing for the furnishing of returns of the numbers of any such wildlife or game or eggs caught, killed, or taken:
                  1. in respect of any authority issued pursuant to subsection (2) or subsection (3),—
                    1. prescribing the areas in which any such wildlife or game may be kept or any such eggs may be hatched and any such progeny reared:
                      1. prescribing the types of cages, runs, or other enclosures in which any such wildlife or game or progeny may be kept:
                        1. providing for the planting of any plants or of any specified kind of plants in or adjacent to any such cage, run, or other enclosure:
                          1. prescribing the areas where any such wildlife or game or progeny may be liberated:
                            1. providing for inspection by officers or servants of the Department at all reasonable times.
                            2. Notwithstanding anything in any other provision of this Act, any authority issued under this section may contain conditions authorising the holder to use, for the purpose of catching alive or killing any wildlife or game, any live decoys or any net or noose or trap or any firearm or any other method the use of which is otherwise expressly prohibited by this Act or by any regulations made under this Act.

                            3. Every person to whom any authority is granted under or pursuant to this section or, where the authority is given to a Fish and Game Council, the Council and every officer or employee of the Council or other person exercising the powers of the Council pursuant to that authority who commits a breach of or fails to comply with any condition on which the authority was granted commits an offence against this Act and is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 67F(5).

                            Notes
                            • Section 53: replaced, on , by section 80 of the Conservation Law Reform Act 1990 (1990 No 31).
                            • Section 53(7): amended, on , by section 22 of the Conservation (Natural Heritage Protection) Act 2013 (2013 No 89).
                            • Section 53(7): amended, on , by section 8 of the Wildlife (Penalties and Related Matters) Amendment Act 2000 (2000 No 43).