Threat of Axis Deer on the Big Island

[opihikao]

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Originally posted by Oneself

Wait, are you saying people have BROUGHT them to the island to hunt them ?

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(*Snipped - more at link) August 22, 2012 Article / Tribune Herald

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Song said helicopter pilot Thomas Leroy Hauptman flew four axis deer, from Maui, where the animals were introduced in the 1950s, to the Big Island where they’re not established. He brought back about a dozen mouflon sheep with him to Maui from the Big Island.

Hauptman on Monday entered a plea of guilty in federal court to one misdemeanor count of illegally transporting wildlife, specifically axis deer in 2009. He could be sentenced to up to a year in prison. His defense suggested that he perform community service by flying 500 hours in his helicopter working for the group fighting to eradicate axis deer from the Big Island, the Big Island Invasive Species Committee.

Song said Hauptman was the courier, and not the mastermind.

The owner of the Maui ranch where the sheep were taken, Jeffrey Scott Grundhauser, is scheduled to appear in court Thursday. He’s charged with one misdemeanor count of selling wildlife — axis deer and mouflon sheep — without the proper permit. He also faces up to one year in prison.

Song said federal officials are investigating other individuals in the case.

The first confirmed sighting of an axis deer on the Big Island came in May 2011.

http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections...sland.html