The Hen and Chickens Islands (usually simply known as the Hen and Chickens) lie to the east of the North Auckland Peninsula off the coast of northern New Zealand. They are located 12 kilometres to the east of Bream Head and 40 kilometres southeast of Whangarei.

The islands were named by Captain James Cook, who first sighted them in 1769. It has been suggested that the name was inspired by an old name for the star cluster usually known as the Pleiades (and called Matariki by the Maori).

Originally owned by the Maori Ngapuhi iwi, they were sold to the New Zealand Government in 1883. The islands were made a scenic reserve in 1908 owing to the rarity of their flora and fauna, and became a wildlife refuge in 1953. Hen Island had actually passed from Maori hands a few years earlier, being bought by Thomas Outhwaite in 1872. It was bequeathed to the nation by his daughter Isa Outhwaite in 1927, and it too was names as a scenic reserve.

The islands are noted for their bird life, with colonies of shearwaters and petrel, and also forest birds which are now scarce or extinct on the mainland.

In June 1940, the Mail Liner Niagara sank off the islands after hitting a mine. Most of the cargo, which included gold bullion, was later salvaged.

Hen Island

Hen Island, or Taranga lies separate from the rest of the chain, lying seven kilometres to the southwest. It is the largest island by some considerable distance, totalling 4.7 km². Long and thin, it has a length of six kilometres and an average width of under 1000 metres. The island is dominated by a rocky ridge reaching to over 400 metres at its highest point, which is called The Pinnacles.

Sail rock, a stack, rises from the ocean three kilometres to the south of Hen Island. It is a prominent navigational point for yachts.

The Chicken Islands

The Chicken Islands, or Marotiri consists of a chain of five small islands running northwest to southeast to the north of Hen Island. The chain consists of Mauitaha (also known as Northwestern Chicken), Lady Alice Island (also known as Big Chicken or Motu Muka), Whatupuke (also known as Middle Chicken), and Coppermine Island (also known as Eastern Chicken), as well as the outlying Southwestern Chicken.

Mauitaha (Northwestern Chicken)

Mauitaha is a small rocky island covering 30,000 m². It is almost split into two sections, the largest of which lies to the north.

Lady Alice Island (Big Chicken or Motu Muka)

This island is named after Lady Alice Fergusson, and is the largest of the five chickens. It is of particular significance because of its flora and fauna. The island covers 1.4 km² and is surrounded by rocky reefs. It was occupied by Maori until the 1820s, and was used as a base for fishermen in the 1890s. Cattle were introduced at about this time, but were removed in the 1920s.

Whatupuke (Middle Chicken)

Formerly known as Whakahau, this island is composed of a large eastern section and a peninsula to the southwest. The coast of this peninsula forms one of the chain's main land features, a 300 metre wide bay (Starfish Bay). The island covers 1 km², and is steep, rising to 250 metres.

Coppermine Island (Eastern Chicken)

Coppermine island covers an area of 750,000 m². It is composed of two sections joined by a short isthmus. As the name suggests, there are copper deposits on the island, but attempts at mining them in 1849 and 1898 proved unprofitable.

Southwestern Chicken

This 200,000 m² scrub-covered rock lies one kilometre to the south of Mauitaha. It is a rugged island, rising to almost 100 metres.

External links

Hen and Chickens chain (http://www.charter.net.nz/Charter2000/infoHenChicken.htm)

References

Wise's New Zealand Guide (4th ed.) (1969). Dunedin: H. Wise & Co. (N.Z.) Ltd.