“Just as an interesting side note - there was a native species of rodent identified from a fossiled jaw found so this could also be added to the list of indigenous animals…”

I assume you mean the St. Bathans varmint?

It’s not a rodent. Rodents are Glires within Placentalia, within Eutheria, which is the sister group to Metatheria (Which contains Marsupialia). Both are nested within Theria, which is the sister group to the Monotremata(platypus and echidnas). Along with a couple of other clades such as the Triconodonts (The dino-eating Repenomamus was one of these) and the Multituberculates (sprawling mammals that are famously called the “Rodents of the Mesozoic” for their convergent appearance) all of these animals can be found within Mammalia based on many skeletal features.

Here is where it gets really cool, the St. Bathans animal (or animals, to disassociated skeletal remains remember) is the sister group to Mammalia proper. It’s still a Mammaliaforme and probably would have looked like a little shrew with sprawling legs similar to lizards or salamanders (only Therian mammals walk erect, all other mammals were sprawlers or semi-sprawlers.)

You can learn more here

http://www.pnas.org/content/103/51/19419.abstract

Another side note- Ferrets are one of the major nuisances in New Zealand. Originally introduced for their fur, New Zealand now has the largest wild population of ferrets IN THE WORLD. Amazing how that can happen.

Yes, there have been several mammal species that have been introduced in New Zealand but didn’t take (although one wonders if any of those, like the moose, have actually managed to keep going). New Zealand is interesting because I see a lot of similarities to the situation in Japan (where I live) in terms of non endemic species and their effect on the ecology. Like Japan, there are a lot of animals that have been introduced to a previously isolated habitat and some of them are benign, some didn’t make it, and some are quite invasive. Since this is one of my areas of research, this situation with the moose over there is quite fascinating for me.

Side note- It’s an interesting thing about the mongoose you mentioned. Although they didn’t seem to catch on in New Zealand, they were introduced in Japan as well to control a type of poisonous snake and they have thrived. They have actually become a threat to a lot of native fauna. One of their favorite foods? A type of rare hare (well, it’s sort of like a rabbit. ).

A lot of these animals are introduced with the best intentions and then they have unforseen consequences for the native ecosystem. It is interesting that the moose seems to have kept a relatively low profile, having a minimum if not zero effect of the native plant and animal life. I would think that with the moose, it could have gone the other way.

It would be very interesting if a group of ten animals has managed to create an ongoing population. Another commenter asked what other animals might provide “moosey” hair. Well, there have been many species of mammal introduced into New Zealand (most intentionally for one reason or another) and I believe there are around 30 species still living in the wild. Some of these introduced species include the wallaby, opossum, stoat, ferret, weasel, thar, chamois, rabbit, hare, hedgehog, and eight species of deer. Other domesticated animals introduced that have feral populations include the pig, goat, cattle, horse, and sheep.

Any that could be mistaken for moose? Perhaps the deer? It’s hard to say. Anyway, maybe this list is helpful to illustrate how many non indigenous mammals have been brought to New Zealand in the course of human habitation.