The hunt for the moose in Fiordland may soon heat up, with a $100,000 "bounty" being offered for a photograph of the elusive animal.
New Zealand clothing company Hallenstein Brothers has pledged the "bounty", and enlisted Bull Creek moose hunter Ken Tustin to tell his story.
He has searched for the moose, 10 of which were imported from Canada and released in Fiordland in 1910, for more than 30 years.
He has also written two books on the moose.
Mr Tustin saw the initiative as a good way to get people talking about wildlife.
He had only just realised the idea of a "bounty" was not a joke.
"If it gets people out there and having fun and an adventure, it fits exactly why we do this ourselves," Mr Tustin said.
He was not worried about bounty hunters frightening off the moose.
He believed the harsh nature of Fiordland would act like a "coarse sieve" and "only the keen ones will be left".
"Sooner or later someone ... is going to find the moose. It doesn't matter who in the end."
Mr Tustin will appear in Hallensteins' winter advertising campaign talking about his hunt for the moose.
"It's an enduring New Zealand mystery. It belongs to all Kiwis. I just happen to be fronting it."
Sergeant Tod Hollebon, of Te Anau, said it was an interesting story which held a lot of mystique for New Zealanders and if the "bounty" attracted people to the area, he urged them to be prepared.
It was difficult terrain which required people to be well equipped and knowledgeable about what they were doing.
"Best of luck and take a waterproof camera," he said.
The New Zealand Wildlife Trust has 11 remote cameras, sponsored by groups or individuals, situated throughout the Fiordland wilderness in the hope of capturing a moose.
The results so far have been negative.
