An explosion in feral pig numbers is tearing up native bush in the Waitākere Ranges and has led to the animals reaching a coastal seabird colony, an Auckland councillor warns.
Ken Turner said the pig population had "exploded" over the past two years, with the animals now spotted on the Cornwallis Peninsula near a petrel colony.
He pointed the finger at his own council for losing focus on the issue.
"Lack of pest control, lack of council putting their budget in the right places for contractors," the Waitākere ward councillor told Breakfast.
He said pigs had lived in the ranges since "Captain Cook dropped some off", but private and recreational hunters had long kept them in check.
Auckland Council says its control efforts are working, with hunting already making a significant dent in the population.
Turner agreed the culling was delivering results, saying contractors had killed more than 100 pigs in recent weeks.
"But those numbers alone show you how bad the problem was."
He said it was frustrating to see parks closed to the public over kauri dieback while pigs ran free through the same bush.
"It's the hypocrisy of having closed our parks to trampers, and yet now it's being obliterated by pigs," he said.
"They do far more damage than the trampers. Pigs out, people in is my new motto."
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