A plan by Parks Canada to allow a moose cull within the boundaries of a northern Cape Breton park has prompted backlash from local residents.

People lined the Cabot Trail outside the Cape Breton Highlands National Park Tuesday to air their frustration.

“There's been one shot,” said protestor Dennis Day. “That's all we've heard here so far. You'll hear it for miles off the mountain.”

The cull is a partnership between Parks Canada and the Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources. They say there are too many moose.

Parks Canada is allowing 35 to 40 moose to be taken on North Mountain.

“I live just down the road, I can get up any morning to see five or six moose,” said protester Doreen MacKinnon. “But now I haven't seen any moose in probably a year.”

Parks Canada says the moose are hyper-abundant throughout the park, with the population density about four times what it should be.

“Hyper-abundance is partly about moose, but much more about the forest and the fact that they're too many moose to allow for a stable forest and for us to restore one. We're quite confident they're too many moose and have been for years,” said Derek Quann, Parks Canada resource conservation manager.

According to aerial surveys conducted in 2014 by Parks Canada, there are 40 moose in the cull area, which they say is consistent with previous years.

But Day says he spent time in an airplane last week with a member from the Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources and the number is much lower. 

“He counted one, I spotted four,” said Day. “That's all we saw in the 20 square kilometre zone. That tells me there's not as many as there used to be.”  

The Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources is organizing the hunt, meaning no one from the local area is involved.

That has non-aboriginal hunters upset.

“If they were going to have it anyway, I think they should've drawn out of a hat,” said Day. “We are the people that live here. They should of gave half and half. But I don't think they should have the hunt at all.”

The hunt is expected to continue until Dec. 18.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kyle Moore.