We recently spent a few hours on Somes/Matiu Island in the middle of Wellington Harbour on Christmas Eve 2018.
The cross harbour ferry departs from Days Bay and calls into Somes Island on some trips across to the CBD at Queens Wharf. Convenient departures from both sides of the harbour allow for a good 5 or 6 hours on the island although at least two visits would be needed to see all there is to see and do on the island.
The cross harbour ferry departs from Days Bay and calls into Somes Island on some trips across to the CBD at Queens Wharf. Convenient departures from both sides of the harbour allow for a good 5 or 6 hours on the island although at least two visits would be needed to see all there is to see and do on the island.
Originally a quarantine station, and prisoner of war camp in WW1, the island is now a predator free sanctuary for some of New Zealand's endangered species. Managed by The Department of Conservation, DOC, strict measures are taken to prevent foreign plants (eg. seeds) and animals (eg. mice) from entering Somes Island.
Take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footprints is a good place to start, apart for your lunch and drink bottles.
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| Wellington Harbour entrance from Somes Island. |
Somes Island supports many species of birds, both endemic and introduced which flourish in the predator free environment. The chaffinch below seemed to be watching the ferry enter the harbour too.
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| Male chaffinch |
As there are large areas of grasses covering the island, seed eating species can be seen readily. The chaffinch was introduced into New Zealand in the 1860s, originally in Nelson.
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| Looking north towards Petone. |
Blackbacked gulls nest on the island. Just a few metres from the track from the ferry to the info centre near the top of the island, we found the first nest.
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| Nesting gull. |
Thousands of skinks inhabit the island. We saw hundreds sunning themselves along the tracks.
Whilst waiting for the ferry to go home, we walked along to the site of the degaussing station which was setup in WW2 to protect ships from German magnetic mines. A commotion at the side of the track drew attention to there fact that we had disturbed a nesting gull which immediately set up up a distraction away from the nest.
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| Upset disturbed gull |
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| Camouflaged blackbacked gull eggs. |
On returning quietly the gull was back keeping her eggs warm.
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| Back on the nest. |
I've kept the best to last.
One of the only reptiles to survive the Cretaceous extinction which wiped out the dinosaurs is the tuatara, endemic to New Zealand. It has almost disappeared from the mainland but survives on predator free offshore islands. Somes Island being one of them.
One of the only reptiles to survive the Cretaceous extinction which wiped out the dinosaurs is the tuatara, endemic to New Zealand. It has almost disappeared from the mainland but survives on predator free offshore islands. Somes Island being one of them.
Although we had seen tuatara before at the museum in Invercargill and at Zelandia we were thrilled to see some sunning themselves in a their natural (unmanaged) environment.
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| A young tuatara, possibly 30-40 years old judging by its size. |
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| A much older, fully grown specimen, maybe 80-100 years old. |
Provided one does not make any noise or sudden movement, you can get reasonably close (1-2 metres in this case) and they will stay there soaking up the heat from the sun.
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| This photo is not cropped and taken with a 100mm macro lens on a Canon 80D. |
