In the 1880s , large numbers of mustelids ( stoats , ferrets and weasels ) was released in New Zealand to reduce rabbit numbers , but they also preyed heavily on many native species including the kakapo . Other browsing animals , such as introduced deer , competed with the kakapo for food , and caused the extinction of some of its preferred plant species . The kakapo was reportedly still present near the head of the Whanganui River as late as 1894 , with one of the last records of a kakapo in the North Island being a single bird caught in the Kaimanawa Ranges by Te Kepa Puawheawhe in 1895 .