Kakapo its specific epithet "habroptilus" comes from "habros" "soft", and "ptilon" "feather". The bird has so many unusual features that it was initially placed in its own tribe, Strigopini. Recent phylogenetic studies have confirmed the unique position of this genus as well as the closeness to the kākā and the kea, both belonging to the New Zealand parrot genus "Nestor". Together, they are now considered a separate superfamily within the parrots, Strigopoidea, the most basal of all living parrots. Within the Strigopoidea, the kakapo is placed in its own family, Strigopidae. The common ancestor of the kakapo and the genus "Nestor"
Kakapo deposits on Canterbury limestone cliffs that kakapo were among their prey. Kakapo defensive adaptations were no use, however, against the mammalian predators introduced to New Zealand by humans. Birds hunt very differently from mammals, relying on their powerful vision to find prey, and thus they usually hunt by day. Mammalian predators, in contrast to birds, often hunt by night, and rely on their sense of smell and hearing to find prey; a common way for humans to hunt kakapo was by releasing trained dogs. The kakapo's adaptations to avoid avian predation have thus been useless against its new enemies, and