This article addresses the ecology of the Black Stilt (Himantopus novaezelandiae) in a century of industrialization: consequences of indirect human impact. The Black Stilt (Himantopus noveazelandiae) is a critically endangered species that requires advanced conservation methods to effectively sustain the species. Endemic to New Zealand, the Black Stilt is found in riverbed, delta, and open wetland habitats of the Mackenzie Basin where a braided river gravel substratum is exposed for part of the year. Like many other island species, over the past century, the Black Stilt has declined a result of habitat destruction and increased predation by introduced species. In the case of the Black Stilt, these changes have also resulted in detrimental inbreeding. Investigators who have attempted to develop conservation plans have yet to develop a viable plan that reduces both human impacts and predation. However, all investigators are able to agree that conservation plans need to begin with the monitoring and adjustment of interbreeding and predation impacts. In this aspect, the study of the Black Stilt is a model species for the study of endangered species; its recovery will require that primary and secondary causes of species endangerment are well understood, and the development of appropriate conservation plans are based on this understanding.