Fears that wild horses roaming a New South Wales national park could be targeted in a massive aerial culling program have been allayed, but what should be done with the brumbies remains a sticking point for government agencies and animal advocates.

Key points: Brumbies have so far been excluded from a mass cull of feral animals across New South Wales national parks

Brumbies have so far been excluded from a mass cull of feral animals across New South Wales national parks Advocate groups are calling for the State Government to fund a trapping program to rehome the horses following drought and bushfires

Advocate groups are calling for the State Government to fund a trapping program to rehome the horses following drought and bushfires An ecology scientist said that rehoming would be difficult on the scale needed and that it made no ecological sense for the brumbies to be excluded from an aerial cull

The drought, followed by the massive bushfires that roared through Guy Fawkes River National Park last year, have left the landscape and native animals vulnerable.

In response to the situation there and in other national parks, the NSW Government instigated its largest cull of feral animals including deer, pigs, foxes and cats — but not brumbies.

Erica Jessup from the Guy Fawkes Heritage Horse Association said while she is relieved there are no plans to shoot the horses, she believes the money dedicated to the culling operation could be better spent.

"We would like to see [the Government] put that money towards a dedicated trapping program," she said.

"We've had three years of drought conditions which would make trapping horses very easy; we would like to see them commit some of that money to trapping."

'We're not about leaving them on-park'

The Guy Fawkes Heritage Horse Association works to rehome brumbies from the Guy Fawkes River National Park, after they have been trapped by national parks.

Ms Jessup said they are not against getting horses out of the park, in fact the association would like to see the brumby population in the park reduced to zero.

"What we have tried to do is provide an option for these horses off-park and for them to be removed from the park in a passive manner in preference to being shot out of a chopper," she said.

"We're not about leaving them on-park, there's far too many of them down there."

Erica Jessup (L) runs the Guy Fawkes Heritage Horse Association which rehomes brumbies. ( ABC Back Roads: Ron Ekkel )

Ms Jessup estimated there are between 1,500 and 2,000 wild horses in the park and many of them are in a poor condition or dying in the aftermath of drought and fire.

She said the association only received 23 horses for rehoming in 2019, despite requests for more.

Ms Jessup said demand for the brumbies is strong and the association is ready to receive as many horses as National Parks can trap.

"This program has been running for 15 years and demand far outstrips supply," she said.

"The horses have built a great name for themselves, they're very popular and even people that are dedicated to other breeds of horses like stock horses and quarter horses are becoming more interested in them."

Support for culling

Professor in Ecology at Charles Sturt University, David Watson, does not believe brumbies should necessarily be excluded from the aerial culling programme in Guy Fawkes National Park.

"When environmental scientists, when agencies talk about culling, this isn't some bloodthirsty desire," he said.

"This is wanting to minimise the effects these animals are having on national heritage values — on the values for which the park was gazetted in the first place."

Professor Watson said he is not against trapping and rehoming the brumbies either, but believes it is not feasible on the kind of scale needed in Guy Fawkes River National Park.

"It's very rough country, there could be horses all tucked away in little gorges that are very hard to access," he said.

"So simply getting to them, and getting them to a place where they could be mustered, where they could be loaded onto vehicles and for those vehicles to be able to take those horses away — that's simply not possible in many parts of the park."

Professor Watson said the aftermath of the bushfires is the time to be having the conversation around brumby management.

"Excluding [horses from the cull] makes no sense on ecological grounds, and I think the reason for excluding them is because of political sensitivities," he said.

"I've spent time in country where there have been feral horses in large numbers and it just brings a tear to your eye to see these exquisite chunks of Australia just being trashed, and we all lose."

Signs are posted up to warn of 1080 bait poisoning in the area. ( Supplied: Department of Panning, Industry and Environment )

'Welfare issues' prevent trapping

The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) developed a Horse Management Plan for Guy Fawkes River National Park in 2006; among its recommendations was the capture and removal of the animals.

But NPWS Deputy Secretary, Atticus Flemming, said the trapping programme is currently on hold due to "welfare concerns".

"The welfare issue means that trapping is not an option right now," he said.

"When trapping commences, then yes, re-homing is definitely one option that we have used and will continue."

Mr Flemming had no indication of when the trapping programme would recommence but that it will be under ongoing review.

"It will be to do with how rapidly the landscape recovers and the welfare of the horses," he said.

An NPWS spokesperson declined to comment on whether the Service would consider changing its tactics on the culling issue to make it specific to brumby trapping.