New Zealand Subantarctic Islands
The New Zealand Subantarctic Islands comprise five island groups located in the Southern Ocean, situated between New Zealand's mainland and Antarctica. This remote archipelago includes the Snares, Auckland Islands, Campbell Island, Bounty Islands, and Antipodes Islands, characterized by their unique geological formations, with some islands being volcanic domes and others granite outcrops. The total land area of these islands is approximately 76,458 hectares, and they are known for their rich biodiversity, hosting numerous endemic and endangered species of flora and fauna, such as megaherbs and various seabirds, including albatrosses and penguins.
Despite a brief history of human habitation, the islands remain largely undisturbed due to their isolation and challenging conditions, making them crucial for the preservation of unique ecosystems. Many of the islands have been designated national nature reserves, and their surrounding waters are protected as marine reserves. In recognition of their exceptional natural value, UNESCO awarded the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands World Heritage status in 1998. Today, the islands serve primarily as wildlife habitats, with restricted human access, allowing for limited expeditionary tourism. The conservation efforts highlight the importance of preserving these pristine environments for future generations.
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New Zealand Subantarctic Islands
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Official Name: New Zealand Subantarctic Islands
Location: Southern Ocean
Type: Natural
The New Zealand Subantarctic Islands are five island groups in the Southern Ocean that lie between the New Zealand mainland and the continent of Antarctica. The Snares (Tini Heke), the Auckland Islands (Motu Maha) and Campbell Island (Motu Ihupuku) are south of Stewart Island and are located on the Campbell Plateau. The Bounty Islands (Moutere Hauriri) and the Antipodes Islands (Moutere Māhue) are to the east of South Island and are located on the Bounty Platform. The total land area of all the islands combined is 76,458 hectares, or 764.58 square kilometres.
Located about 100 kilometres south of Stewart Island, the Snares are the closest to the mainland. They are made up of two groups of islands. North East Island, Broughton Island, Alert Stack and several smaller islands make up the larger group. Five small islands make up the Western Chain. The islands are granite and relatively small. North East Island is the largest, at 2.8 square kilometres.
The Auckland Islands are about 350 kilometres south of Stewart Island. Made up of six islands, they are the largest island group and have a total land area of 625 square kilometres. The two largest islands are Auckland Island and Adams Island. Smaller islands include Enderby Island and Disappointment Island.
Campbell Island is about 550 kilometres south of Stewart Island. A hilly island with a land area of 113.3 square kilometres, it had greater human population than any other New Zealand Subantarctic Island during the twentieth century.
The Bounty Islands are located 700 kilometres to the east of South Island. Made up of twenty-two granite outcrops, they have a total land area of about 1.4 square kilometres. The largest island is Depot Island.
The Antipodes are 860 kilometres south-east of Stewart Island. The total land area for all islands in this group is 20.9 square kilometres. The two largest islands are Antipodes Island and Bollons Island.
While the Subantarctic Islands have a short history of human habitation, their isolation, poor soil and lack of sun have thwarted long-term, permanent settlements. Today, they are nature reserves and home to many unique bird, animal and plant species, including several that are endemic and/or rare or endangered.
History
Located on the Pacific Plate, the island groups were formed by different geological processes. The Auckland, Campbell and Antipodes Islands are volcanic domes that were formed between ten and fifteen million years ago. Glaciers during the Pleistocene ice ages reshaped the land, creating valleys, lakes, fiords, and sea-filled craters that became harbours. The Snares and Bounty Islands are granite outcrops.
The human history of the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands is relatively short. Artefacts found on Enderby Island in the Auckland Islands indicate that Polynesians most likely settled on the island during the thirteenth or fourteenth century but did not occupy the island for more than a year or two. The next known human inhabitants were European sealers who arrived in the Antipodes Islands in 1805 and then moved on to the Bounty, Auckland and Campbell Islands. Within twenty-five years, they had decimated the population of fur seals. They were followed by Russian and American explorers who visited the Auckland Islands in 1830. Scientific expeditions from France, the United Kingdom and the United States visited the Auckland Islands in 1840. In 1850 European whalers founded a whaling station and a short-lived farming settlement on Enderby Island. French and German astronomers visited Auckland Island in 1874.
The Auckland Islands also provided a refuge to eighteenth-century survivors of shipwrecks. Located on a major shipping route between Australia and Europe, at least eleven ships wrecked near the Auckland Islands and Antipodes Islands. Castaways found shelter on the islands while waiting—sometimes unsuccessfully—for a passing ship to rescue them. The New Zealand government established supply depots for the castaways, while government steamers periodically visited the islands in search of survivors.
During the twentieth century, additional attempts to establish farming settlements were made at Enderby Island and Auckland Island but were short lived. During World War II, the New Zealand government set up coast-watching stations on the Auckland Islands and Campbell Island. The Campbell station later became a meteorological station, and a new station was added in 1957. It closed in 1994.
Significance
The geographic isolation and limited human habitation of the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands has resulted in some of the world's most pristine natural environments. The islands are home to a great biodiversity of flora and fauna, with species found nowhere else in the world. Among the most dominant plant species are the endemic megaherbs, large, colourful flowering plants that thrive in the region's cold, sunless climate. Olearia is another common plant, found in the Auckland Islands. Tussocks are found on the Antipodes, Auckland and Campbell Islands and ferns on the Antipodes Islands.
Numerous birds, including penguins, albatrosses, cormorants, shags and sooty shearwaters, inhabit the islands. The islands are the breeding places of ten species of albatrosses and have the largest populations of several albatross species. The New Zealand sea lion, or Hooker's sea lion, the Southern right whale and the Southern elephant seal also use the islands as their breeding sites. Other sea mammals include leopard seals and humpback and sperm whales.
Many of the islands, including Campbell Island and the Auckland Islands, became reserves in the early twentieth century. In order to protect their ecological value, the New Zealand government granted all of the island groups national nature reserve status under the Reserves Act 1977. The Marine Reserves Act 1971 and the Subantarctic Islands Marine Reserves Act 2014 granted marine reserve status to the waters surrounding each island group.
In recognition of their conservation value, the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation awarded the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands World Heritage status in 1998. The two criteria used to award this status were the value to researchers of the islands' evolutionary processes that resulted from the islands' isolation, climatic factors and latitudinal spread and the uniqueness of the endemic and threatened species of marine fauna, land birds and invertebrates.
The sole occupants of the islands are wildlife, with human access to the islands restricted. Cruise ships take sightseers on expeditionary tours of the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands and nearby Macquarie Island, Australia.
Bibliography
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"New Zealand Sub-Antarctic Islands." United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation, whc.unesco.org/en/list/877. Accessed 17 June 2024.
"New Zealand's Subantarctic Islands." Department of Conservation, New Zealand Government, www.doc.govt.nz/nature/habitats/offshore-islands/new-zealands-subantarctic-islands. Accessed 17 June 2024.
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