KEY POINTS:
Just 14 Kaimanawa horses will head for the abattoir after what appears to be the Conservation Department's most efficient annual muster in the decade-long history of its management plan.
A recent count revealed 654 horses living on the Central Plateau, meaning numbers this year had to be brought back to the acceptable limit of 500.
Homes for 140 horses were recently found thanks to the help of three horse protection societies. A vet will determine which of the remaining 14 horses will need to be destroyed.
Conservationists say excess numbers of the wild horses threaten the fragile ecology of the central plateau area.
The 2007 muster had until yesterday been delayed numerous times due to poor weather.
But department staff took yesterday's cold and cloudy but calm morning to get their four contracted helicopters and their pilots working.
They combined with eight muster farmers to bring in the wild horses in what is understood to be the fastest time ever.
"The muster went amazingly well," said the department's Palmerston North area manager, Phil Mohi. "It's the first time we've used four helicopters. We usually use three and normally we expect to fly possibly a day-and-a-half to get that number of horses in.
"We had all the horses in the yard within about four hours. According to the vet whose been on every muster it is the fastest muster on record. We're happy about that."
Mr Mohi estimated the total cost of this year's round up was $50,000.
"The re-homed horses will mainly go to the Wairarapa, but some horses are going up to Ruatoria this year, and then others will head towards Huntly and the Waikato."
The first muster, in 1997, involved the rounding-up of more than 1000 horses. Last year 79 were removed from the area and all but 17 were re-located.
