View source for Earth:Rangitoto Island

{{Infobox islands
| name          = Rangitoto Island
| local name    = {{native name|mi|Rangitoto}}
| native name   =
| image name    = Rangitoto02.jpg
| image caption = Rangitoto Island as seen from One Tree Hill
| image size    = 275
| map = New Zealand
| map_width = 275
| coordinates      = {{coord|-36.786742|174.860115|region:NZ|display=inline}}
| map caption      =
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| nickname         =
| location         = [[Place:Auckland|Auckland]]
| archipelago      =
| total islands    =
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| area_km2         =
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| highest mount    = {{convert|260|m|ft|abbr=on}}
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| country          = New Zealand
| additional info  =
}}

'''Rangitoto Island''' is a [[Earth:Volcano|volcanic]] island in the Hauraki Gulf near [[Place:Auckland|Auckland]], New Zealand. The 5.5&nbsp;km wide island is an iconic and widely visible landmark of Auckland with its distinctive symmetrical [[Earth:Shield volcano|shield volcano]] cone rising 260 metres (850&nbsp;ft) high over the Hauraki Gulf.<ref>{{cite gvp | vnum=0401-02=&volpage=photos | title=Auckland Field – Photo Gallery | accessdate=2008-06-21}}</ref><ref name="GVP1">{{cite gvp | vnum=0401-02 | title=Auckland Field | accessdate=2009-04-29}}</ref> Rangitoto is the most recent and the largest (2311 [[Hectare|hectare]]s)<ref name="ACC"/> of the approximately 50 volcanoes of the Auckland volcanic field.<ref name="GVP1"/> It is separated from the mainland of Auckland's North Shore by the Rangitoto Channel. Since [[Social:World War II|World War II]], it has been linked by a causeway to the much older, non-volcanic Motutapu Island.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nzine.co.nz/features/rangitoto.html |title=Rangitoto – Auckland's Fragile Icon |publisher=NZine |accessdate=26 April 2010|first=Jacqueline Crompton|last=Ottaway|date=30 April 2004 }}</ref>

{{lang|mi|Rangitoto}} is Māori for 'Bloody Sky',<ref name="GNS">[http://www.gns.cri.nz/what/earthact/volcanoes/arc/rang.html What happened to local Maori?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031005214034/http://www.gns.cri.nz/what/earthact/volcanoes/arc/rang.html |date=5 October 2003 }} (from the Rangitoto page on the [[Earth:GNS Science|GNS Science]] website)</ref> with the name coming from the full phrase {{lang|mi|Ngā Rangi-i-totongia-a Tama-te-kapua}} ("The days of the bleeding of Tama-te-kapua"). Tama-te-kapua was the captain of the {{lang|mi|Arawa|italic=no}} {{lang|mi|[[Engineering:Waka (canoe)|waka]]}} (canoe) and was badly wounded on the island, after having lost a battle with the {{lang|mi|Tainui|italic=no}} {{lang|mi|iwi}} (tribe) at Islington Bay.<ref name="ACC"/><ref name="ARC"/>

==Geology==
[[File:Rangitoto lava tube.JPG|thumb|left|The opening to a lava tube at Rangitoto, partially obstructed by tree growth]]
Rangitoto was formed by a series of eruptions commencing at least 6000 years ago.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Shane |first1=Phil |last2=Linnell |first2=Tamzin |title=Reconstructing Rangitoto volcano from a 150-m-deep drill core (project 14/U684) |date=March 2015 |url= http://www.eqc.govt.nz/sites/public_files/4618-Reconstructing-Rangitoto-volcano-from-150-m-deep-drill-core.pdf |publisher=University of Auckland |accessdate=6 October 2015}}</ref> The most recent eruptions occurred between 550 and 600 years ago in two episodes, 10 to 50 years apart, and are thought to have lasted for several years during the later shield-forming episode. The first recent episode erupted most of the volcanic ash that mantles neighbouring Motutapu Island, and produced the lower, northern scoria cone. The second episode built most of Rangitoto, erupting all the lava flows and main scoria cone at the apex.<ref>Hayward, B.W.; Murdoch, G., Maitland, G. (2011). ''Volcanoes of Auckland: The Essential Guide''. Auckland University Press.</ref> The 2.3 cubic kilometres of material that erupted from the volcano was about equal to the combined {{not a typo|mass produced}} by all the previous eruptions in the Auckland volcanic field, which were spread over more than 250,000 years.<ref name="ARC">[http://www.arc.govt.nz/environment/volcanoes-of-auckland/rangitoto.cfm Rangitoto] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080520152831/http://www.arc.govt.nz/environment/volcanoes-of-auckland/rangitoto.cfm |date=20 May 2008 }} (from the Auckland Regional Council website)</ref><ref name="NG">[http://www.nzgeographic.co.nz/articles.php?ID=75 Rangitoto] (abridged article from ''New Zealand National Geographic'')</ref>

In 2013, scientists said new studies showed Rangitoto had been much more active in the past than previously thought, suggesting it had been active on and off for around 1000 years before the final eruptions around 550 years ago.<ref>{{cite news| url= http://www.newshub.co.nz/nznews/rangitoto-more-active-than-thought--study-2013041111 |work=3 News NZ |title= Rangitoto more active than thought - study| date=11 April 2013 |accessdate=9 April 2016}}</ref>  In February 2014 a 150m deep hole was drilled through the western flank of Rangitoto. This revealed a history of activity going back at least 6000 years, with the bulk of activity post-dating 3800 years. Civil Defence officials said the discovery did not make living in Auckland any more dangerous, but did change their view of how an eruption might proceed.<ref>{{cite news| url= http://www.newshub.co.nz/entertainment/officials-downplay-volcano-danger-2013041210 |work=3 News NZ |title= Officials downplay volcano danger| date=12 April 2013 |accessdate=9 April 2016}}</ref> The fact that Rangitoto Island has erupted off and on for a long period of time establishes it as the only known polygenetic volcano in the Auckland volcanic field.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Polygenetic magmatism in a monogenetic field: an isotopic investigation from the Auckland volcanic field, New Zealand |journal=American Geophysical Union |volume=24 |pages=V24C–02 |last=McGee |first=L. |last2=Beier|first2=C.|last3=Smith|first3=I. E. |last4=Turner |first4=S. |year=2009|bibcode=2009AGUFM.V24C..02M}}</ref> It is possible that Rangitoto includes a cluster of several small volcanoes that are now covered by the main shield.<ref>{{cite news |title=Volcano hiding explosive secret |first=Jamie |last=Morton |url= http://m.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=11612508 |newspaper=The New Zealand Herald |date=28 March 2016 |accessdate=9 April 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Linnell |first=Tamzin |last2= |first2= |display-authors=0 |date=2016 |title=Long-lived shield volcanism within a monogenetic basaltic field: The conundrum of Rangitoto volcano, New Zealand |journal=Geological Society of America Bulletin |volume= 128|issue= 7–8|pages= 1160–1172|doi=10.1130/B31392.1 |bibcode=2016GSAB..128.1160L }}</ref>

Subsidence back down the throat during the cooling process has left a moat-like ring around the crater summit, which may be viewed from a path which goes right round the rim and up to the highest point.<ref name="ACC">[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/auckland/introduction/hauraki/default.asp#rangitoto Hauraki Gulf Islands – Rangitoto Island] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101225020855/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/auckland/introduction/hauraki/default.asp |date=25 December 2010 }}, Auckland City Council. Updated September 2008. Retrieved 29 April 2009.</ref><ref name="ARC"/> In some parts of the island, fields of lightweight, clinker-like black lava stones called [[Earth:Scoria|scoria]] are still exposed, appearing very recent to a casual eye. About 200 metres from the top of the mountain on the eastern side visitors can walk through some of about seven known [[Earth:Lava tube|lava tube]]s — tubes left behind after the passage of liquid lava. The more accessible of the caves are signposted.<ref name="ARC"/> Lava tubes are formed when low-viscosity molten lava known as pahoehoe flows and cools on the outside due to contact with the ground and air, to form a hard crust allowing the still-liquid molten lava to continue to flow through inside. At Rangitoto the large tubes are cave-like. A torch is needed to explore the caves. The longest known cave is about 50 m long.<ref>Auckland University, Geology Dept, field guide</ref>

==History==
[[File:Rangitoto Tangle fern.jpg|thumb|right|Bracken fern, ''[[Biology:Pteridium esculentum|Pteridium esculentum]],'' Rangitoto Island.]]
[[File:Rangitotolavapath.jpg|thumb|right|Lava field with path and encroaching vegetation.]]
[[File:Orchids on Rangitoto.jpg|thumb|right|[[Biology:Pterostylis|Pterostylis]] growing on Rangitoto.]]
[[File:Rangitoto Island And Motutapu Island.jpg|thumb|left|The thin land bridge link between Rangitoto Island and Motutapu Island is visible here from the air.]]

===Māori association===
The volcano erupted within the historical memory of the local Māori iwi (tribes).<ref name="ARC"/><ref name="NG"/> Human footprints have been found between layers of Rangitoto volcanic ash on the adjoining Motutapu Island.<ref name="NG"/> Ngāi Tai was the iwi living on Motutapu, and considers both islands their ancestral home. Ngāti Paoa also has links with Rangitoto.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Natural History of Rangitoto Island|author=Mike D Wilcox|isbn=978-0-9583447-3-9|pages=16|year=2007|publisher=Auckland Botanical Society|display-authors=0}}</ref>

A number of Māori myths exist surrounding the island, including that of a 'tupua' couple, children of the Fire Gods. After quarreling and cursing Mahuika, the fire-goddess, they lost their home on the mainland because it was destroyed by Mataoho, god of earthquakes and eruptions, on Mahuika's behalf. [[Earth:Lake Pupuke|Lake Pupuke]] on the North Shore was created in the destruction, while Rangitoto rose from the sea. The mists surrounding Rangitoto at certain times are called the tears of the tupua for their former home.<ref name="ARC"/>

===Since European colonisation===
The island was purchased for ₤15 by the Crown in 1854, a very early date in New Zealand's colonisation by Europeans, and for many years served as a source of [[Earth:Basalt|basalt]] for the local construction industry.<ref name="RANGIHERALD">{{Cite news|page= |title=The Hauraki Gulf Marine Park, Part 2|newspaper=Inset to The New Zealand Herald|date=2 March 2010}}</ref> It was set aside as a recreation reserve in 1890, and became a favourite spot for daytrippers.<ref name="RANGIHERALD"/> Some development occurred nonetheless. In 1892, salt works were created on {{convert|5|acre|m2}} near Mackenzies Bay. The wharf and summit road were opened in 1897, with another road linking the summit to Islington Bay by 1900.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Rangitoto |author=Gordon Ell |isbn=978-0-908608-04-1 |year=1980 |series=Bush Jacket Guides |publisher=The Bush Press |location=Auckland}}</ref> For over 30 years (from 1898 to 1930), [[Earth:Scoria|scoria]] was [[Earth:Quarry|quarried]] from near the shoreline on the west side of Islington Bay<ref>Wolfe, R. (2002). ''Auckland: a pictorial history''. Auckland: Random House. p 228.</ref> as building material for Auckland.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Exploring North Island Volcanoes |author=Glenys Robertson |isbn=978-1-86966-078-9 |year=2005 |publisher=New Holland Publishers |location=Auckland |page=126}}</ref> From 1925 to 1936, prison labour built roads on the island and a track to the summit.<ref name="ACC"/> Islington Bay was formed in the South East area of the island. Formerly known as Drunks Bay, it was used as a drying out area for inebriated crews before they ventured out of the gulf. The bay is very popular with Auckland boaties as a refuge, as it is quite sheltered from the prevailing South West winds. In summer it is not unusual to find 30 boats anchored overnight.

Military installations were built during [[Social:World War II|World War II]] to support the [[Place:Auckland|Auckland]] harbour defences and to house {{wipe|United States}} troops or store mines. The most visited remains of these installations is the old observation post on the summit. The northern shore of the island was used as a wrecking ground for unwanted ships, and the remains of several wrecks are still visible at low tide.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.arc.govt.nz/heritage/maritime-heritage/rangitoto-ships-graveyard/rangitoto-ships-graveyard_home.cfm|title=Rangitoto Ships' Graveyard|publisher=Auckland Regional Council website|accessdate=2008-06-08 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/11749065|publisher=Flinders University website|access-date=2016-02-06 |title=Rich Pickings: Abandoned Vessel Material Reuse on Rangitoto Island, New Zealand|last1=Bennett|first1=Kurt}}</ref>

Baches (small holiday houses) were built around the island's edge in the 1920s and 1930s. The legality of their existence was doubtful from the start and the building of further baches was banned in 1937. Most have since been removed because of the ban and because the island has become a scenic reserve. However some 30 of the 140 baches remain {{As of|2010|lc=y}},<ref name="RANGIHERALD"/> and some are being preserved to show how the island used to be, once boasting a permanent community of several hundred people, including a good number of children. The buildings included some more permanent structures like a seawater pool built of quarried stones by convict labour, located close to the current ferry quay.<ref>[http://www.rangitoto.org/ Welcome to Rangitoto Island] (from the Rangitoto Island Historic Conservation Trust)</ref>

There are several daily ferries to the island from Auckland's main ferry terminal, currently run by Fullers. These allow day trips for the fit to walk to the summit and back, with stunning views of the harbour and city. An alternative to walking, a land train, co-ordinated with the ferry sailings, takes visitors to a short way below the summit.<ref name="FU">[http://www.fullers.co.nz/index.php/ps_pagename/rangitotoisland1 Rangitoto Island –  Unique Volcanic Island] (from the Fullers ferry operator website)</ref> Sea kayak trips from the mainland to the island are also available.<ref>[http://www.aucklandseakayaks.co.nz/kayaking-tours.html Kayak Trips to Rangitoto] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110005906/http://www.aucklandseakayaks.co.nz/kayaking-tours.html |date=10 November 2012 }} (Day Trips to Rangitoto Island)</ref>   Accommodation on the island is limited to a small number of dwellings near the wharf, one of which is available for public hire.  There are no campsites on the island, though there is camping at Home Bay on the adjacent Motutapu Island.

==Biology==
Because there are virtually no streams on the island, plants rely on rainfall for moisture. It has the largest forest of pōhutukawa trees in the world,<ref name="ACC"/> as well as many [[Biology:Metrosideros robusta|northern rātā]] trees. In total, more than 200 species of trees and flowers thrive on the island, including several species of [[Biology:Orchid|orchid]], as well as more than 40 types of [[Biology:Fern|fern]].<ref name="ARC"/> The vegetation pattern was influenced by the more recent eruptions creating lava flow crevices where pōhutukawa trees (''Metrosideros ssp'') grow.<ref>{{Cite thesis|title=The vegetation pattern of Rangitoto|date=1992|publisher=ResearchSpace@Auckland|url=http://hdl.handle.net/2292/27|language=en}}</ref>

The island is considered especially significant because all stages from raw [[Earth:Lava|lava]] fields to scrub establishment and sparse forests are visible. As lava fields contain no soil of the typical kind, windblown matter and slow breaking-down processes of the native flora are still in the process of transforming the island into a more habitable area for most plants (an example of [[Earth:Primary succession|primary succession]]), which is one of the reasons why the local forests are relatively young and do not yet support a large bird population. However, the kākā, a New Zealand-endemic [[Biology:Parrot|parrot]], is thought to have lived on the island in pre-European times.<ref name="ARC"/>

Goats were present on Rangitoto in large numbers in the mid 19th century, but were eradicated in the 1880s. [[Biology:Fallow deer|Fallow deer]] were introduced to Motutapu in 1862 and spread to Rangitoto, but disappeared by the 1980s. The brush-tailed rock-wallaby was introduced to Motutapu in 1873, and was common on Rangitoto by 1912, and the [[Biology:Common brushtail possum|brushtail possum]] was introduced in 1931 and again in 1946. Both were eradicated in a campaign from 1990 to 1996 using 1080 and [[Chemistry:Cyanide|cyanide]] poison and dogs.

[[Biology:Stoat|Stoat]]s, [[Biology:European rabbit|rabbits]], [[Biology:House mouse|mice]], [[Biology:Rat|rat]]s, [[Biology:Cat|cat]]s and hedgehogs remained a problem on the island,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Natural History of Rangitoto Island|author=Mike D Wilcox|isbn=978-0-9583447-3-9|pages=23–24|year=2007|publisher=Auckland Botanical Society|display-authors=0}}</ref> but the Department of Conservation (DOC) aimed to eradicate them beginning with the poisoning of [[Biology:Black rat|black rat]]s, [[Biology:Brown rat|brown rat]]s and mice and in August 2011, both Rangitoto and neighbouring Motutapu Islands were officially declared pest-free with both islands now also boasting populations of newly translocated [[Biology:North Island saddleback|North Island saddleback]]s.<ref>[http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/threats-and-impacts/animal-pests/restoration-projects/rangitoto-and-motutapu-islands-restoration-project/ Rangitoto & Motutapu restoration project], Department of Conservation.</ref>

As the area is a DOC-administered reserve (in partnership with the ''tangata whenua'' Ngāi Tai and Ngāti Paoa),<ref name="GNS"/> visitors may not take dogs or other animals onto the islands.<ref name="FU"/>

[[File:Rangitotopanorama.jpg|600px|thumb|center|Rangitoto Island viewed from North Head]]

==Access==
Regular ferry services are provided by Fullers from downtown Auckland. The distance to the summit is {{convert|2.4|km|1|abbr=on}}, a one–hour walk by the most direct route.

==See also==
* Volcanism in New Zealand
* Auckland volcanic field
* List of volcanoes in New Zealand
* ''Under the Mountain'' was a novel, TV series and film set around Rangitoto.

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal|last=Jamieson|first=Alastair|title=Rangitoto|journal=New Zealand Geographic |volume=68 |year=2004|url=http://www.nzgeographic.co.nz/archives/issue-68/rangitoto }}
* Julian, Andrea (1992). [http://hdl.handle.net/2292/27 The vegetation pattern of Rangitoto]. University of Auckland PhD thesis
* Whiting, Diana (1986). [http://hdl.handle.net/2292/389 Vegetation colonisation of Rangitoto Island: the role of crevice microclimate]. University of Auckland Masters thesis
* {{cite book|last1=Bennett|first1=Kurt|title=Rich pickings: Abandoned vessel material reuse on Rangitoto Island, New Zealand|date=2014|publisher=Flinders University|url=https://www.flinders.edu.au/ehl/fms/archaeology_files/dig_library/theses2/Bennett%202014%20MMARCH%20Rangitoto%20Island%20New%20Zealand.pdf}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Rangitoto Island}}
* [http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-visit/auckland/hauraki-gulf-islands/rangitoto-island-scenic-reserve/ Rangitoto Island Scenic Reserve] at the Department of Conservation
* [http://www.rangitoto.org/ Rangitoto Island Historic Conservation Trust]
* [http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?AC=SEE_ALSO&QF0=Subjects&QI0==%22Rangitoto%22&XC=/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll&BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&TN=heritageimages&SN=AUTO29070&SE=1274&RN=0&MR=20&TR=0&TX=1000&ES=0&CS=1&XP=&RF=HIOReport&EF=&DF=HIORecord&RL=0&EL=0&DL=0&NP=2&ID=&MF=WPEngMsg.ini&MQ=&TI=0&DT=&ST=0&IR=331&NR=1&NB=0&SV=0&SS=1&BG=&FG=&QS=index&OEX=ISO-8859-1&OEH=ISO-8859-1 Photographs of Rangitoto Island] held in Auckland Libraries' heritage collections.

{{Coord|-36.786742|174.860115|type:isle_region:NZ|display=title}}


[[Category:Polygenetic shield volcanoes]]

{{Sourceattribution|Rangitoto Island|1}}