Surge in feral horse numbers expose growing damage inside Kosciuszko retention zones

The Invasive Species Council says the latest feral horse population survey results show a huge, but not unexpected, population rebound in parts of Kosciuszko National Park where aerial control was paused last year, highlighting the urgent need to scrap the retention zones that were put in place by the NSW government back in 2021.

The new figures confirm there are now at least 8,000 feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park – and likely significantly more. Numbers will also have increased further due to breeding since the survey which was conducted in November 2025.

Four retention zones covering 32% of the Park were created under the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act to preserve feral horse populations. While the legislation was repealed last year with cross-party support, the retention zones and management arrangements, including the arbitrary 3,000 horse population target, remain in place until a new management plan is finalised in 2027.

Feral horse damage at Little Peppercorn Creek, northern Kosciuszko NP, 6 April 2026, note hoofprint

‘Sadly, because no control occurred in the 218,000 hectares of retention areas last year, numbers have surged again. That has devastating consequences for alpine wetlands, mountain streams and endangered wildlife, but it also means more horses will now need to be killed as a direct consequence of that delay,’ Invasive Species Council CEO Jack Gough said.

‘It’s simple biology – feral animals do not stop breeding because control efforts are paused for a year, and so while large populations are allowed to persist, these boom cycles will continue.

‘Pleasingly, the government has committed to resuming routine aerial control operations after the June long weekend, but this whole situation has exposed the folly of pausing effective control in the first place.

‘I have full confidence that National Parks staff will undertake this work professionally, humanely and safely.

‘This population survey makes it clear that it is past time to change these silly rules and allow them to get on with this job without endless political and bureaucratic constraints.

‘The good news is that numbers remain below the 2023 peak of around 17,000 horses and outside the retention zones, where aerial control has continued, the numbers remain very low and environmental recovery has been remarkable.

‘The sooner feral horses are managed like every other invasive species, the better chance we have of protecting our fragile alpine landscapes, rivers and wildlife.

‘If you head to Long Plain today, you can see the damage remains, the dung piles remain and the feral horse population is booming.

‘Rehoming and fertility control are never going to meaningfully reduce horse numbers at this scale. We are dealing with thousands of feral horses across rugged alpine country. And not only are they completely impractical, both methods have significant welfare issues with wild horses having to be mustered, contained and transported.

‘If the government wants to continue pursuing these measures to support the public relations side of the brumby debate, then that funding should come from the tourism budget – not from the environmental funding desperately needed to protect the National Park and threatened native species.

‘Given there is cross-party consensus on the urgent need to get horse numbers down, I urge the government to go hard this year to reduce numbers well below the 3,000 figure rather than take a conservative approach.

‘By pausing effective control, horse numbers have rebounded and a conservative approach this year will very likely mean numbers are again well above 3,000 by July next year. The consequence of that will be even more horses will need to be culled once the new management plan comes in and the current ridiculous population target is reduced.

‘All sides of politics need to move past the failed retention zone experiment and commit to driving feral horse numbers as close to zero as possible.’

Background:

In November 2025, the NSW Parliament repealed the controversial Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act – ending years of political protection for feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park.
The Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Repeal Bill 2025, first introduced by Wagga Wagga MP Dr Joe McGirr, passed with bipartisan and crossbench backing from Labor, Liberal, Greens, Legalise Cannabis and Independent MPs.
The current management plan for feral horses remains in place until it is replaced in 2027 and imposes a legal obligation on NSW National Parks to carry out control operations to reduce the feral horse population to 3,000 across 32% of Kosciuszko National Park by 2027.
The 2023 amendment to allow aerial shooting was supported by the RSPCA NSW, the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Veterinary Association, the Public Service Association of NSW, the Royal Zoological Society of NSW, the Brungle Tumut Local Aboriginal Land Council, the NSW Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee, the Kosciuszko National Park Wild Horse Heritage Community Advisory Panel, the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Advisory Council and the Southern Ranges NPWS Regional Advisory Committee.

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