The Department of conservation is frustrated with suggestions rats should be left to co-exist with native species, calling the suggestion irresponsible.

Ecologist Jamie Steer told Fairfax in an interview this week he thinks conservation efforts should shift away from pest control towards focusing on the future of ecosystems, rather than trying to re-create the ones our native species are used to.

DOC's threatened species ambassador Nicola Toki told TVNZ1's Breakfast today the suggestions would essentially mean "game over for most of those thing that we treasure the most".

"It's a very minority theory that somehow we should find ways for our native wildlife to co-exist with introduced predators.

"New Zealand has wildlife that has evolved without four legged teethed furry predators for 80 million years.

"We know that the moment they arrived they just began annihilating things like kakapo, tuatara and kiwi and continue to do so.

"Nineteen out of 20 North Island brown kiwi chicks don't survive where we don't do pest control.

"I just think its a little bit irresponsible to start spreading that."