Islands

Why the islands are so precious

The Waikato region has a large number of small islands and rocky stacks close to the Coromandel Peninsula. Many of these islands provide important wildlife habitats, helping to protect rare, threatened and endangered native species.

Twenty kilometres off the east coast of the Coromandel are three island groups:

• the Aldermen Islands
• Cuvier Island
• the Mercury Islands.

These islands are home to large populations of seabirds for example:

• petrels
• storm petrels
• shearwaters

• tuatara
• giant centipedes
• lizards (geckos, skinks)
• tusked weta and giant weta.

Closer to shore are the Ohinau Island Group.

The Motukawao Islands are a group of small inshore islands off the west coast of the Coromandel. The islands are home to many threatened bird species.

Gannet Island on the west coast of the Waikato region is an Island Wildlife Sanctuary. It is an important:

• haulout and breeding site for New Zealand fur seal
• breeding site for (Australian) gannets.

Islands provide a refuge for plants and animals that were once widespread throughout our Region, before the introduction of exotic plants and animals. Find out more about the threats from coastal pests.

Learn more about the region’s plant and animal pest control programmes in our Pest Management Strategy.

Island management

The protection of islands is critical to saving these threatened plants and animals from extinction. These island ecosystems are very fragile and an accidental fire or rat introduction could have devastating results.

The Department of Conservation manages a number of islands including:

• the Aldermen Islands, Cuvier Island and two of the Mercury Group (Red Mercury and Stanley Islands) as nature reserves
  
• four of the Mercury Islands and one of Motukawao Islands, Motutapere, as scenic reserves.
  

Visit the Department of Conservation website to find out more about the islands they manage.