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unaccustomed climate), 104 some pigeons from the Solomon Islands and one weka, which
reportedly later lived in the menagerie in the imperial zoo at Schönbrunn, but was seldom seen
due to its secretive lifestyle. 105 It was outcomes like these which led him to comment in 1891 that
he had concerns about the prospects of his friend, Buller, succeeding where he had failed. 106
Granted it would have been better if the numbers he collected, in relation to how many he
attempted to save, had been reversed or at least if there had been a better balance between the
two, this attempt at bird conservation, nevertheless, should not be overlooked or regarded as an
example of his being motivated solely by money.
Reischek seems to have also inherited the beliefs of Buller, who was a strong opponent of
introducing stoats, ferrets and weasels into the country to combat the growing rabbit problem of
the 1870s. 107 In a 1902 editorial of the Auckland Star it states: “He tried hard to do lasting good to
New Zealand by protesting against the introduction of stoats and weasels. He wrote to the press,
and communicated with the Government, pointing out the evils that would result from these pests
being let loose in this colony. His efforts were, however, without avail, and the stoats and weasels
came to stay.” 108 Reischek gave a paper on the habits and effects of mustelids in Transactions
and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute in 1885, in which he warned against the stoat in
104 Andreas Reischek, “Seltsame Kameraden in der Thierwelt”, in: Jugendheimat 8 (1894): 264.
105 Andreas Reischek, “Die nichtfliegenden Vögel Neuseelands”, in: MOVW 14:23 (1891): 332f.; Reischek,
“Kakapo”, 222; Westerskov, “Reischek’s 1890 Paper”, 274f. In Sterbende Welt it states that the live specimens were
killed due to seawater getting into their cages through the carelessness of a sailor, leaving only four rare lizards, a
weka and several pigeons and ducks (316).
106 Reischek, “Die nichtfliegenden Vögel Neuseelands”, 332. In comparison, the conservationist, Richard Henry,
attempted to transfer between 350 and 400 kakapo to the predator-free Resolution Island from 1894. However, stoats
soon swam across from Fiordland and slaughtered them all within the space of six years (Cresswell, Kakapo
Recovery Plan 1996-2005, 7).
107 The introduction of animals for food, sport and as reminders of home implemented by the various acclimatisation
societies of New Zealand in the latter half of the nineteenth century provided the country with the first intentionally
introduced non-endemic pests. However, it was not until the 1870s that one such animal reached plague proportions,
namely the rabbit. Rabbits stripped away vegetation and crops from pastureland and competed for food with sheep,
leading to their being termed a menace by farmers. In order to contend with the growing rabbit problem farmers
demanded the introduction of their natural enemy: stoats, ferrets and weasels. It was reasoned that the multiplying
rabbit population was a result of an absence of natural predators. By introducing such animals they could then restore
the ‘balance of nature’. Ultimately, economic factors forced the issue, and, in the end, instead of fixing the problem
or even replacing it with another, the country ended up with two problems, the second even worse than the first and
now numbering in the millions. Today a combined and continual effort from local conservation and wildlife agencies
and tens of millions of dollars are required each year to control and rid introduced pests from conservation areas, and
ultimately prevent the extinction of native flora and fauna throughout the country and offshore islands. (See King,
Immigrant Killers, 83-119; Carolyn M. King (ed.), The Handbook of New Zealand Mammals. 2 nd Ed. Auckland:
Oxford University Press, 2005, esp. 133-38, 146f., 161-67, 171-73, 176-81, 185f., 189-94, 200-2, 264-67, 284-86,
288f., 293, 296f., 304f., 310-14, 322-24; Gerard Hutching, The Natural World of New Zealand: An Illustrated
Encyclopaedia of New Zealand’s Natural Heritage. Auckland: Viking, 1998, 82, 116f., 185f., 275f., 280f., 286-88,
329; Marr, Crown Laws, 227-57, 413-16.)
108 Auckland Star: editorial 22 May (1902): 4.
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