…He hopes, therefore, some day, to prove, by a thorough search of some of the unexplored patches, that the takahe is not yet extinct. Against this hope has to be put the fact that ground birds of the Sounds region have greatly diminished in numbers during the last few years owing to the spread of weasels, ferrets, and cats and the takahe, although capable, one would suppose, of dealing a severe blow at an enemy with its formidable beak, would be no match for either weasel or ferret. It is sixteen years since one of these birds was seen, and although reports have gained currency from time to time of its peculiar booming cry being heard in the remoter parts of the wild country it used to inhabit, they have lacked confirmation. It may yet exist in some out of the way untrodden valley, but we fear the chances are against this. It may be mentioned that none of the three specimens captured is to be seen in this colony. Two are in the British Museum, and the other in the Dresden.
The flightless takahe was once widespread in both North and South Islands. But, with the arrival of mammal predators, all but the Fiordland population was wiped out. The Murchison and nearby Stuart mountains are the only sites where takahe now thrive without human intervention.
Without the efforts of this determined enthusiast, we may have only later discovered this last surviving population of takahe – possibly too late to save them from the damaging effects of predators.
I’m Julie the Takahē Advocacy Ranger for DOC’s Takahē Recovery Team. I just wanted to let you know we have just launched the Official Takahē Recovery website ( http://www.takaherecovery.org.nz ) and was hoping you might share the link on your website on your takahē page.