The tuatara is a species of reptile endemic to New Zealand. Despite its close resemblance to lizards, it is part of a distinct lineage, the order Rhynchocephalia. The name tuatara is derived from the Māori language and means "peaks on the back".
D'Urville Island, Māori name Rangitoto ki te Tonga, is the largest island in the Marlborough Sounds, on the northern coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It was named after the French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville. With an area of approximately 150 square kilometres (58 sq mi), it is the eighth-largest island of New Zealand, and has around 52 permanent residents. The local authority is the Marlborough District Council.
The Auckland Islands are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying 465 km (289 mi) south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying 460 km2 (180 sq mi), is surrounded by smaller Adams Island, Enderby Island, Disappointment Island, Ewing Island, Rose Island, Dundas Island, and Green Island, with a combined area of 570 km2 (220 sq mi). The islands have no permanent human inhabitants.
The New Zealand storm petrel is a small seabird of the family Oceanitidae endemic to New Zealand. Thought to be extinct since 1850, a series of sightings from 2003 to the present indicated the presence of a previously unknown colony. The population of New Zealand storm petrels has been estimated to be less than 2000.
Auckland Island is the main island of the eponymous uninhabited archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the New Zealand subantarctic area. It is inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list together with the other New Zealand Subantarctic Islands in the region.
The animals of New Zealand, part of its biota, have an unusual history because, before the arrival of humans, less than 900 years ago, the country was mostly free of mammals, except those that could swim there or fly there (bats). However, as recently as the Miocene, it was home to the terrestrial Saint Bathans mammal, implying that mammals had been present since the island had broken away from other landmasses. The absence of mammals meant that all of the ecological niches occupied by mammals elsewhere were occupied instead by either insects or birds, leading to an unusually large number of flightless birds, including the kiwi, the weka, the moa, the takahē, and the kākāpō.
Lyall's wren or the Stephens Island wren was a small, flightless passerine belonging to the family Acanthisittidae, the New Zealand wrens. Now extinct, it was once found throughout New Zealand, but when it came to the attention of scientists in 1894, its last refuge was Stephens Island in Cook Strait. Often claimed to be a species driven extinct by a single creature, the wren in fact fell victim to the island's numerous feral cats. The wren was described almost simultaneously by both Walter Rothschild and Walter Buller. It became extinct shortly thereafter.
Moutohora Island is a small uninhabited island located off the Bay of Plenty coast of New Zealand's North Island, about 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north of the town of Whakatāne. The 1.43 km2 (0.55 sq mi) island is a remnant of a complex volcano which has eroded, leaving two peaks. This is still an area of volcanic activity and there are hot springs on the island in Sulphur Valley, McEwans Bay, and Sulphur Bay.
Little Barrier Island, or Hauturu in Māori, lies off the northeastern coast of New Zealand's North Island. Located 80 kilometres (50 mi) to the north of Auckland, the island is separated from the mainland to the west by Jellicoe Channel, and from the larger Great Barrier Island to the east by Cradock Channel. The two aptly named islands shelter the Hauraki Gulf from many of the storms of the Pacific Ocean.
Mana Island is the smaller of two islands that lie off the southwest coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The name of the Island is an abbreviation of the Maori name Te Mana o Kupe, which means "The Mana of Kupe".
The laughing owl, also known as whēkau, the jackass, or the white-faced owl, is an extinct species of owl that was endemic to New Zealand. Plentiful when European settlers arrived in New Zealand, its scientific description was published in 1845, but it was largely or completely extinct by 1914. The species was traditionally considered to belong to the monotypic genus Sceloglaux Kaup, 1848, although recent genetic studies indicate that it belongs with the boobook owls in the genus Ninox.
The Solander Islands / Hautere are three eroded remnants volcanic islets towards the western enterance of the Foveaux Strait just beyond New Zealand's South Island. The islands lie 40 km (25 mi) south of the coastline of Fiordland.
The grey-faced petrel is a species of petrel endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori name ōi and as a muttonbird.
The Tasman Island, part of the Tasman Island Group, is an oval island with an area of 1.2 square kilometres (0.46 sq mi), lying close to the south-eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island is located in the Tasman Sea, situated off the Tasman Peninsula and is contained within the Tasman National Park.
French Pass is a narrow and treacherous stretch of water that separates D'Urville Island, at the north end of the South Island of New Zealand, from the mainland coast. At one end is Tasman Bay, and at the other end the outer Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere leads out to Cook Strait.
Haimona Patete was a New Zealand Māori leader and religious founder. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Ngati Koata and Ngati Kuia iwi. He was born on D'Urville Island, Marlborough, New Zealand in about 1863. He founded a religion based in part upon the teachings of Paora Te Potangaroa
John Te One Hippolite was a New Zealand farm labourer, political activist, nurse. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Kuia and Ngāti Toa iwi. He was born in D'Urville Island, Marlborough, New Zealand on 25 August 1929.
The Stephens Island / Takapourewa lighthouse is one of New Zealand most powerful lights with a range of 18 nautical miles. Perched 183 metres (600 ft) up, on top of Stephens Island, it guards Cook Strait and Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere, at the top of the South Island / Te Wai Pounamu.The light flashes white once every six seconds from a white cast iron tower.
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.
Motunau / Plate Island is a small island in the Bay of Plenty, roughly 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) off New Zealand's North Island at Okurei Point and a similar distance east-south-east from the much larger Mōtītī Island. The island is split into northern and southern portions by a small channel as narrow as 2 metres across, with several small sea stacks surrounding the two main parts of the island. Like many of the other islands in the Bay of Plenty, Motunau is volcanic in origin and lacks any permanent fresh water source, and as a result has not seen permanent settlement by humans.
