Deer Wars

The era of live deer capture had an aura of glamour to it. But the reality for those involved was very different. 

The success of live capture and the skyrocketing prices inevitably encourage poaching.

By the mid 70's things were about to change dramatically. The hunters had become so efficient they were shooting themselves out of a job.

The mid 1960's are the golden years for aerial hunters. Venison prices are high, fuel costs low and there seems no end to the deer. But something has to change.

Shooting from choppers is a game changer but teams are learning from scratch, working at break-neck pace in such dangerous terrain that an accident is always on the cards.

The arrival of helicopters turns the culling business on its head. Hunters shoot deer from the air and with big money to be made, venison recovery will never be the same.

Suddenly everyone wants to be a culler but who will make the cut?

The elimination strategy hasn't worked. In 20 years, the cullers have shot perhaps 10% of the deer. It's time to up the ante.

Red deer run rampant across the high country in New Zealand, causing extensive environmental damage. A 50-year effort to control the invasive animal gets underway.

Deer Wars tells the story of the 50-year struggle to control New Zealand's red deer population. Lives were lost and fortunes made.