By ANNE BESTON
Fourteen kereru (wood pigeons) have been found killed in a Wellington regional park.
The spate of killings began last week when three birds were found shot in the Kaitoke Regional Park, near the campground carpark.
Since then 11 more of the protected species have been found dead.
Department
of Conservation community relations programmes manager Sally Airey said it would take years for the population to recover from the killings and their absence was bad news for the ecology native forest.
The total kereru population in the park is estimated at about 50 birds.
DoC Poneke area manager Peter Simpson said the department and the Wellington Regional Council had talked to Upper Hutt police about finding out who was responsible and two birds had been sent off for autopsies.
"It's just a sad and unnecessary activity and the police are probably as bewildered as we are at this stage," he said.
He said that although the latest dead birds were discovered yesterday, the killings were probably carried out at the same time.
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