Taranaki National Park, New Zealand

Taranaki National Park

(formerly Egmont National Park) is located on the North Island of New Zealand, in the west side of the Taranaki region. The protected landscape has a 341.49 km2/131.85 mi2 area with an almost circular-shaped boundary, except for the Northwest border that extends to the coast. The protected landscape has a diff erence in vegetation along its border because forests were cleared for agriculture outside the park. Three volcanic cones make up the mountainous terrain of the protected area with two of the cones (Mt. Pouakai and Mt. Kaitake) in the Northwest, and Taranaki Maunga/Mt. Taranaki (formerly Mt. Egmont) in the region’s center. It has an elevation of 2,518 m/8,261 ft, making it the highest point in the park. The peak is also the North Island’s second highest point and is among the most conical mountains in the world. Mt. Taranaki was once a recently active stratovolcano (a steep-profi led explosive volcano) that is currently dormant. Its last major eruption occurred in 1854. In 1865, Taranaki Maunga and the surrounding area were seized from the native Māori people by the New Zealand Government under the powers of the Settlements Act of 1863, as a means of creating and keeping peace after the second Taranaki War. The area was formerly known as Egmont National Park, that was established as a forest reserve in 1881. In 1900, it offi cially became a national park that is managed by New Zealand’s Department of Conservation. The IUCN considers the region to be category II park. Egmont National Park was originally titled after Mount Egmont, which was named by Captain Cook in 1770, in tribute of John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont. Mount Egmont appeared on maps until 29 May 1986, when the Minister of Lands declared that Mount Taranaki would be an alternate and equal name. In January 2020, the park was renamed to Taranaki National Park and its native Māori name, Te Papakura o Taranaki, which roughly translates to “The sacred ground of the shining mountain peak”. The name change has not been fully recognized by the New Zealand government, so protected area is known as Taranaki/Egmont National Park. The Mt. Egmont name was removed and offi cially replaced with its more common and native name, Taranaki Maunga/Mt. Taranaki. According to the Māori, the Taranaki Maunga (formerly Pukeonaki) is said to have once stood with other mountains in the central part of the North Island. After losing a battle with another peak (Tongariro) over their love of Pihanga Maunga, Pukeonaki fl ed to the West, carving out the Whanganui River. The protected area’s Köppen Climate Classifi cation is a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) with high rainfall because of its high elevation, proximity to the coast, and warm ocean currents. The region ranges from semi-coastal and montane forests to lush rainforests, tussocklands (grasslands), alpine and scree areas, an extensive kahikatea-rimu-kāmahi semi-swamp forests, and a small area of swampland (Ahukawakawa) that contains a third of the park’s plant species. Taranaki National Park has the only forest tract within the Egmont Ecological District, which provides the area’s only habitat for multiple bird species. The region is home to 28 native birds (such as Miromiro, Tūī, Korimako and Kererū), 15 frequently occurring introduced birds, native snails known as Powelliphanta, several unique invertebrates, and half of New Zealand’s indigenous fi sh species found in or near the region. The park was once home to many endemic species but went extinct due to habitat loss and predation of invasive species such as mice, rats, weasels, ferrets, stoats, cats, and possums. The North Island Brown Kiwi, Fernbird, and Whio (Blue Duck) are all threatened bird species in the protected region. Both the Department of Conservation and regional council have acted to control these predators inside and outside the park, as well as future-plans to reintroduce native birds and bats into the landscape. Te Papakura o Taranaki is a well-respected and sacred place to- the Māori. Acknowledging Taranaki’s and New Zealand’s history with the natives, European settlers, and their descendants is crucial to ensuring that these missteps will never be done again. Progress has been made with the name change of the mountain and the park, and hopefully more progress can be made with the people of New Zealand.