Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand, and is the administrative centre of the Wellington Region. It is the world's southernmost capital of a sovereign state. Wellington features a temperate maritime climate, and is the world's windiest city by average wind speed.
The South Island is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island and sparsely populated Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south by the Foveaux Strait and Southern Ocean, and to the east by the Pacific Ocean. The South Island covers 150,437 square kilometres (58,084 sq mi), making it the world's 12th-largest island, constituting 56% of New Zealand's land area. At low altitudes, it has an oceanic climate. The major centres are Christchurch, with a metropolitan population of 521,881, and the smaller Dunedin. The economy relies on agriculture, fishing, tourism, and general manufacturing and services.
The Southern Alps are a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The name "Southern Alps" generally refers to the entire range, although separate names are given to many of the smaller ranges that form part of it.
The New Zealand dollar is the official currency and legal tender of New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, Tokelau, and a British territory, the Pitcairn Islands. Within New Zealand, it is almost always abbreviated with the dollar sign ($). The abbreviations "$NZ" or "NZ$" are used when necessary to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies.
The huia is an extinct species of New Zealand wattlebird, endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. The last confirmed sighting of a huia was in 1907, although there was another credible sighting in 1924.
Auckland is one of the 16 regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland metropolitan area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Containing 34 percent of the nation's residents, it has by far the largest population and economy of any region of New Zealand, but the second-smallest land area.
The Waitākere Ranges is a mountain range in New Zealand. Located in West Auckland between metropolitan Auckland and the Tasman Sea, the ranges and its foothills and coasts comprise some 27,720 hectares of public and private land. The area, traditionally known to Māori as Te Wao Nui o Tiriwa, is of local, regional, and national significance. The Waitākere Ranges includes a chain of hills in the Auckland Region, generally running approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) from north to south, 25 km west of central Auckland. The ranges are part of the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park.
The Taieri River is the fourth-longest river in New Zealand and is in Otago in the South Island. Rising in the Lammerlaw Range, it initially flows north, then east around the Rock and Pillar range before turning southeast, reaching the sea 30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Dunedin.
The Clarence River is a major river which flows through the Kaikōura Ranges in the northeast of New Zealand's South Island. At roughly 209 kilometres (130 mi) long, it is the longest river in Canterbury and the eighth longest in New Zealand.
Skelton Glacier is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica.
The Hunua Ranges is a mountain range and regional park to the southeast of Auckland city, in the Auckland and Waikato regions of New Zealand's North Island. The ranges cover some 250 square kilometres (97 sq mi) and rise to 688 metres (2255 ft) at Kohukohunui.
The Manawatū River is a major river of the lower North Island of New Zealand. The river flows from the Ruahine Ranges, through both the Manawatū Gorge and the city of Palmerston North, and across the Manawatū Plains to the Tasman Sea at Foxton.
Vagrancy is a phenomenon in biology whereby an individual animal appears well outside its normal range; they are known as vagrants. The term accidental is sometimes also used. There are a number of poorly understood factors which might cause an animal to become a vagrant, including internal causes such as navigatory errors and external causes such as severe weather. Vagrancy events may lead to colonisation and eventually to speciation.
New Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island and the South Island —and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area and lies east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. The country's varied topography and sharp mountain peaks, including the Southern Alps, owe much to tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, and its most populous city is Auckland.
Maungatautari is a mountain near Cambridge in the Waikato region in New Zealand's central North Island. The 797 metre high mountain is an extinct stratovolcano. It is a prominent peak and is visible across the Waipa District. The mountain is the site of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari a large ecological sanctuary and restoration project.
HMNZS Waikato (F55) was a Leander Batch 2TA frigate of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). She was one of two Leanders built for the RNZN, the other being the Batch 3 HMNZS Canterbury. These two New Zealand ships relieved British ships of the Armilla patrol during the Falklands conflict, freeing British ships for deployment.
Stuff is a New Zealand news media website owned by newspaper conglomerate Stuff Ltd. As of early 2024, it is the most popular news website in New Zealand, with a monthly unique audience of more than 2 million.
Auckland is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about 1,531,400. It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, and which has a total population of 1,798,300 as of June 2024. It is the most populous city of New Zealand and the fifth largest city in Oceania. While Europeans continue to make up the plurality of Auckland's population, the city became multicultural and cosmopolitan in the late-20th century, with Asians accounting for 31% of the city's population in 2018. Auckland has the fourth largest foreign-born population in the world, with 39% of its residents born overseas. With its sizable population of Pasifika New Zealanders, the city is also home to the largest ethnic Polynesian population in the world. The Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki Makaurau, meaning "Tāmaki desired by many", in reference to the desirability of its natural resources and geography.
The Butler Range, also known as North Butler Range, is a range located in the Westland District of the West Coast Region on the South Island of New Zealand. The range has also been known as Peaks of the Mist Range.
The Wharepapa / Arthur Range is a mountain range partially marking the boundary between the Tasman District and West Coast Region of New Zealand's South Island. The range is at the eastern extent of the Tasman Mountains which make up much of the island's northwest, making it easily visible from across the low-lying Waimea Plains further to the east. The range's location and its many uses make it a significant site for local Māori, including the iwi of Te Ātiawa and Ngāti Rārua. This includes the prominent peaks of Mount Arthur and Pukeone / Mount Campbell, which both hold mana in their own right and have become part of the identity of the aforementioned iwi.
