This is a stoat, an animal with a cute face, but very lethal.
(Schematic diagram)
How strong is it?
Let's just put it this way, New Zealand poured all its efforts into the country, and it took 8 months and 500,000 New Zealand dollars (about 2.16 million yuan) to finally kill a stoat.
Yes, one.
(Schematic diagram of the stoat)
Here's the thing:
In New Zealand's Fiordlands, there is a rugged island called Chalky Island. Isolated from the rest of the world since ancient times, it has developed a unique ecosystem and is home to many rare animals.
For example, the precious Tekaka hu skink,
(Tekaka Hu skink)
The smallest of the kiwis, the small spotted kiwi,
(Little spotted kiwi)
There are also parrots.
(Parrot owl)
The owl is huge and docile.
They are the only flightless parrot in the world, and because of these characteristics, the population of the parrot owl has rapidly decreased due to human activity, and today they are listed as critically endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN), with fewer than 250 remaining in the world.
(Owl parrot close to humans)
Because there are no predators (and no human disturbances) on Choki Island, these three rare animals, especially the parrots, are able to thrive safely.
It wasn't until August 2022 that cameras on the island discovered that a male ferret had come to the island as a "guest......
(Footage captured by the island's camera)
New Zealanders are like enemies.
Because the stoat is small, it is an energetic and very efficient killer, especially for some smaller birds and lizards, the stoat is a very dangerous existence.
To make matters worse, they are also strong swimmers.
According to scientists, almost half of the stoats are capable of swimming for more than an hour on end, which means that if left unchecked, the stoat is likely to sweep from island to island......
New Zealanders already have experience.
At the end of the 19th century, New Zealanders introduced a herd of stoats and ferrets in the hope of controlling the rabbit population and protecting the pastures of cattle and sheep, but soon these cute little killers caused even more problems, and under their sharp teeth, several species of birds quickly became extinct or endangered, and the owl parrot was one of their victims.
(Stoats hunting birds)
Zoologists speculate that the stoat may have been riding on driftwood at sea, or even swimming to Choki Island on its own, and that people must act now to save the island's fragile ecosystem.
Even if it costs a lot of money!
New Zealand's Department of Environmental Protection (DOC) launched a major biosecurity response, using trapping experts, police dogs, follow-up cameras, helicopters and boats, and finally succeeded in trapping and killing the stoat in eight months.
New Zealand officials proudly say that this is a major victory!
"But we can't take off the gas just yet, as Choki Island is one of the most important places to protect biodiversity in Fiordland, and we need to do everything we can to protect the vulnerable species here. ”
The attitude towards protecting the environment was so satisfying that last month, when the annual review report of the New Zealand Parliament's Special Committee on the Environment revealed the cost of the stoat-killing mission – nearly NZ$500,000.
Now many people began to feel sorry for money, and many netizens complained: "I fully support the protection of endangered animals, but 500,000 New Zealand dollars!
Parties opposed to the government also took the opportunity to attack the government's policy: "What are they using to eliminate stoats, missiles?"
(Stoat hunting)
Regarding this "loser" behavior, government officials explained that the 500,000 yuan is actually "spending a little money to protect a big money".
Because if the stoats are left to action on such a large scale, the island's owls could be devastated, and the government will have to spend millions of dollars to help them find a habitat to protect the species, and the breeding work will cost a lot of money.
(Owls and conservationists)
In fact, this is also New Zealand's long-standing environmental policy.
According to statistics, invasive predators kill about 25 million native birds in New Zealand every year, and about 4,000 native species are at risk of extinction by alien species.
To protect them, New Zealand has spent more than $300 million since 2016 to kill invasive animals, including rats, possums, weasels, ferrets and stoats, in the hope that by 2050, New Zealand will be a "predator-free country".
And although the NZ$500,000 does sound like a lot of money, it actually only takes up 0.5% of the government's budget, and it protects 33% of the country's rare creatures, so it is "great value......
(Environment of Choki Island)
Netizens also agree with the government's approach:
"It should be said that the DOC spent less than 500,000 to maintain a predator-free state on the island where the owl breeding program is located.
Great value for money, DOC's conservation work is one of the greatest things about New Zealand.
The revolution has not yet succeeded, and comrades still need to work hard!"
(Image via Reddit)
"A relative of mine took part in the operation.
The stoat caused a frenzied commotion on the island, not to mention the extreme difficulty of locating a predator in such a large dense environment.
They are truly remarkable. ”
(Image via Reddit)
"Don't be merciful.
I remember there used to be a mink farm in our town (which I personally think was very barbaric) and some activists released the mink.
The devastation is unfathomable, people's pets are missing, and local ecosystems are being destroyed, which is probably the stupidest thing I've ever seen. ”
(Image via Reddit)
Some netizens used the Pareto rule (also known as the 28th rule) to explain the behavior of the New Zealand government:
"Now there are 1,000 stoats on the island, and you catch 700 stupid ones, which is easy, and then it takes a little time to catch 200 cunning ones, and out of the remaining 100, 80 are very difficult to catch, but there are 15 that are even more difficult to catch.
In the end, there were only five left, and they were either hiding in the densest and most inaccessible bushes, on almost vertical cliffs, or in swamps. Anyway, you caught 4 of them, and all that's left is a pregnant ferret, and all your efforts are in vain......
These stoats will ruin the lives of our birds, they don't have any natural predators here, so like opossums, deer, goats, pigs, and all the animals that are introduced, they are good, but our natural environment can't stand it. ”
(Image via Reddit)
In any case, if you look at the numbers alone, the 500,000 New Zealand dollars are indeed cruel and extravagant, but after carefully understanding the background of the story, people understand that protecting the ecosystem is really a huge and hard work.
If you think about it, this is all paying off the debt of mankind......