New Zealand

Volcanic eruptions thrust the land upwards and created the dramatic and jagged landscape of New Zealand. Through the millennia great forest of southern beach, flightless birds, dramatic glaciers and other exotic creatures emerged. These islands are one of the Earth’s most peculiar bioregions, inhabited by a burrowing parrot called the Kakapo and the Kiwi. New Zealand’s geographical isolation was not discovered until 1642 by Abel Tasman who encountered its mysterious wildlife. New Zealand’s natural history is interwoven with its indigenous Maori culture which features the Haka dance. Today, the land, wildlife, and culture in New Zealand captivate travelers, just as it intrigued the early explorers.