Wildlife Act 1953

Wildlife Act 1953
New Zealand Parliament
  • An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the protection and control of wild animals and birds, the regulation of game shooting seasons, and the constitution and powers of acclimatisation societies
Legislative history
Passed1953
Status: Current legislation

Wildlife Act 1953 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand. Under the act, the majority of native New Zealand vertebrate species are protected by law, and may not be hunted, killed, eaten or possessed. Violations may be punished with fines of up to $100,000.

Wildlife are classified under a number of schedules; all vertebrate species not included in these lists are protected by default. The schedules are occasionally amended; for example the kea was granted full protection in 1984, whereas the spur-winged plover (masked lapwing), an Australian species which naturally established itself in New Zealand in the 1930s, had its protected status removed in 2012.

The Act also provides for wildlife sanctuaries, refuges and management reserves.[1]

  1. ^ "Wildlife Act 1953 No 31 (as at 13 March 2017), Public Act – New Zealand Legislation". legislation.govt.nz. Retrieved 2 November 2017.