Call for feral horse cull in Kosciuszko THERE are calls for professional hunters to be able to cull feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park. The call from the conservation group, the National Parks Association of NSW (NPA), follows a report by two experts who say an estimated 14,000 feral horses are doing irreparable damage to water catchments and ecosystems in the Mount Pilot wilderness area. The NSW government is working on a controversial plan to allow amateur hunters into national parks to cull animals deemed pests by authorities. That move is on hold pending completion of a risk assessment. But amateur hunters are banned from shooting feral horses. The NPA says a professional cull is necessary to protect unique sub-alpine ecosystems and native species. " (We need) a professional aerial culling program that follows stringent animal welfare protocols approved by the RSPCA," NPA chief Kevin Evans said in a statement on Tuesday. Current horse removal methods are completely failing to keep up with the breeding rate. The population of feral horses has almost doubled in three years, from about 7700 in 2010 to 14,000 in 2013. Researchers Graeme Worboys and Ian Pulsford say in their report, Observations of Pest Horse Impacts in the Australian Alps, that the large herds are destroying streamside wetlands, eroding banks, compacting soil, altering stream courses and overgrazing. "If we don't take action, there will be more concentrated impacts for birds, mammals, reptiles and frogs that rely on these sub-alpine environments being healthy," Mr Evans said. Endangered species found only in the Australian Alps include the she-oak skink, a snake-like lizard with short legs. According to the website of the NSW Game Council, the body overseeing hunting in the state, amateur hunters are banned from shooting feral horses.