Tawhiti Rahi (Māori) | |
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 Interactive map of Poor Knights Islands | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Northland, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 35°30′S174°45′E / 35.500°S 174.750°E /-35.500; 174.750 |
| Area | 2.714[1] km2 (1.048 sq mi) |
| Administration | |
New Zealand | |
| Designated | 1975 |
ThePoor Knights Islands (Māori:Tawhiti Rahi) are a group of islands off the east coast of theNorthland Region of theNorth Island ofNew Zealand. They lie 50 kilometres (31 mi) to the northeast ofWhangārei, and 22 kilometres (14 mi) offshore halfway betweenBream Head andCape Brett. Uninhabited since the 1820s, they are anature reserve and popularunderwater diving spot, with boat tours typically departing fromTutukaka. ThePoor Knights Islands Marine Reserve surrounds the island.
HistorianJohn Beaglehole (1955) comments that the origin of the islands' name is not clear, and speculates that the name could be related to thePoor Knights of Windsor, or that the islands were named for their resemblance toPoor Knight's Pudding, a bread-based dish topped with egg and fried, popular at the time of discovery by Europeans.
The chain consists of two large islands (Tawhiti Rahi, the larger at 151.5 ha (374 acres), and Aorangi (101 ha (250 acres)) to the south),[2] and several smaller islands.Aorangaia andArchway Island lie to the southwest of Aorangi Island, and there is also a group of smaller rocky islets between the two main islands, the largest of which isMotu Kapiti Island. Others includeBird andKaka Rock.
To the south, there is a smaller island namedNgoio Rock. The Poor Knights Islands are the eroded remnants of a 4-million-year-oldrhyoliticvolcano that is estimated to have been 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) tall and 25 kilometres (16 mi) in diameter.[3]
Springtide range for the islands is around 2 m (6.56 ft), decreasing to aneap tide of around 1 m (3.28 ft). The deep water around the island results in only moderate tidal currents. These are around the same magnitude as the prevailing shelf currents. In the general vicinity of the islands mean flows are around 0.2 m/s (0.656 ft/s) and run toward the southeast.[4]
A remarkable feature of the region is the largeinternal tides that occur. These are a form ofinternal wave driven by the local tidal flow forcing the stratification against sloping areas of the shelf face. The surface manifestation of these waves can be seen from space.[5] These waves generate brief highly localised accelerations. Internal wave amplitudes of around 100 m (109 yd) have been observed, generating flow speeds as great as 0.5 m/s (1.64 ft/s).[6]
The Poor Knights Islands were created in some of the earliest eruptions of the Coromandel Volcanic Zone, between 10 and 9.5 million years ago. The Poor Knights Islands vulcanism represents an early period for the Coromandel Volcanic Zone, as changes in tectonic forces caused the east belt of the Northland Arc (23 to 16 million years ago) to begin moving southwards, and eventually forming the modernTaupō Volcanic Zone.[7]
The islands are protected as a nature reserve and a permit is required to land or tie boats up. Permits are usually granted only for scientific research. A notable native plant of the islands is the spectacularly floweringPoor Knights lily, which has become a popular garden plant.
Feral pigs, which had roamed Aorangi since the departure of Māori in the 1820s, were exterminated in 1936.[8] The islands have been identified as anImportant Bird Area, byBirdLife International because they are home to a breeding population of about 200,000 pairs ofBuller's shearwaters.[9]
The islands contain rock arches and sea caves, including Rikoriko Cave, the largest sea cave by volume in the southern hemisphere, with a cavern measuring 221,494 cubic metres (7,822,000 cu ft) and an opening large enough for small tour boats to enter.[10][11] Rikoriko Cave measures 130 by 80 metres (430 by 260 ft), with a ceiling height of 35 metres (115 ft) and extends 26 metres (85 ft) deep below water.[3]
Tawhiti Rahi contains the Northern Arch, Middle Arch, and Maomao Arch, the latter being a popular diving location. Aorangaia Island's east–west rock arch resembles a long tunnel, while the aptly named Archway Island is bisected by two rock arches, with the larger Cathedral Arch about 40 metres (130 ft) tall.[12]
The islands were earlier inhabited byMāori of theNgāti Wai and Ngati-Toki tribes who grew crops and fished the surrounding sea. The tribe traded with other Maori.
A chief of the tribe namedTatua led his warriors on a fighting expedition to theHauraki Gulf withNgā Puhi chiefHongi Hika in the early 1820s. While they were away, a slave named Paha escaped the islands and travelled toHokianga where he toldWaikato, a chief of the Hikutu tribe, that the islands had been left undefended. As Waikato had been offended by Tatua some years previous when he was refused pigs he had come to trade for, so he and his warriors set out on three largecanoes to attack the islands. They arrived at the islands one night in December 1823[13] and soon overpowered the islanders in the absence of their warriors. Many islanders jumped off the high cliffs to avoid being taken as slaves. Tatua's wife Oneho and daughter were captured and taken to the mainland where a distant relative recognised the wife and helped the two to escape.
Tatua returned to the islands to find a scene of destruction. Only nine or ten people were left on the islands, including his five-year-old son Wehiwehi who had been hidden in a cave during the attack. The islands were declaredtapu and Tatua left with the survivors and went toRawhiti in theBay of Islands where he unexpectedly found his wife and daughter.[14][15][16][17]
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