The Mercury Islands are a group of seven islands off the northeast coast of New Zealand's North Island. They are located off the coast of the Coromandel Peninsula, and northeast of the town of Whitianga.

History

Great Mercury Island (Ahuahu) was settled early in Māori history, becoming a major site for toki (adze) quarry and manufacture, supporting a semi-permanent population. The islands are within the modern day rohe of Ngāti Hei and the Ngāti Whanaunga hapū Ngāti Karaua. Great Mercury (Ahuahu), Kawhitu or Stanley Island and Double Island (Moturehu) were purchased and taken as crown land in 1858–65. Despite inhabiting Ahuahu, the Ngati Hei were not consulted about this purchase. When sea levels were lower, the Opitonui River flowed east to the Pacific Ocean between Cuvier Island and Ahuahu/Great Mercury Island. Archaeological investigations by the University of Auckland continue on the island as sites were exposed by a storm in 2009. During the latter 19th century, the island was a location for kauri gum digging.

The island is owned by Michael Fay and David Richwhite, two prominent New Zealand businessmen. The private island, which features two luxurious residences, can be hired for around $20,000 NZD per day. U2's lead singer Bono and guitarist The Edge stayed on the island during U2's Vertigo concerts in Auckland in November 2006. On 30 November 2009, Ahuahu/Great Mercury Island hosted the first successful launch of Rocket Lab's suborbital Atea-1 sounding rocket.

In 2014, Fay and Richwhite, in partnership with the Department of Conservation, successfully undertook an eradication program to remove kiore, ship rats and cats from the island. In 2016, it was declared pest free, making the entire Mercury Island Group free from introduced mammalian pests. The island remains open to the public to showcase conservation and provide an accessible pest-free island in the Mercury Island Group.

Whakau / Red Mercury Island

Whakau is the easternmost of the Mercury Islands, and at across is also the second-largest. The entire island is surrounded by reddish cliffs up to high, prompting Captain James Cook to give the island its European name on his exploration of the area in 1769. As with the rest of the Mercury Islands, Whakau is volcanic, with evidence of this history evident around the island's coast.

Other islands

The smaller islands in the group have been identified as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International because they provide nesting sites for up to 3000 breeding pairs of Pycroft's petrels. Moturehu/Double Island and Whakau/Red Mercury are home to the critically endangered Mercury Islands tusked wētā.

See also

  • List of islands of New Zealand

References

  • 'Geology – New Zealand's Geological History', from An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock, originally published in 1966. Te Ara – The Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 2006-09-26. Retrieved 2007-04-15.