Aldermen Islands

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}} {{Infobox islands | name = Aldermen Islands | local_name = | image_name = Aldermen Islands 1.jpg | image_caption = A bay on one of the Aldermen Islands. | locator_map = | map_caption = | nickname = | location = [[Mercury Bay]] in the [[North Island]] | coordinates = {{coord|36|58|S|176|05|E|region:NZ_type:isle|}} | archipelago = | total_islands = | major_islands = | area_km2 = 1.3 | length_km = | width_km = | highest_mount = | elevation_m = | population = 0 | population_as_of = | density_km2 = | ethnic_groups = | country = [[New Zealand]] | additional_info = }} The '''Aldermen Islands''' are a small group of rocky islets to the southeast of [[Mercury Bay]] in the [[North Island]] of [[New Zealand]]. They are located off the coast of the [[Coromandel Peninsula]], {{convert|20|km|mi}} east of the mouth of the [[Tairua River]].

[[File:Aldermen Islands.png|thumb|Map of the Andermen Islands]]

The islands were named 'the Court of Aldermen' by Captain Cook and his crew on 3 November 1769 after previously naming Mayor Island.<ref>Cook, J., Wharton, Sir W. J. L. (1968) Captain Cook's journal during his first voyage round the world, made in H. M. Bark 'Endeavour', 1768-71: a literal transcription of the original mss; with notes and introd. ed. by Captain W. J. L. Warton. Adelaide: Libraries Board of South Australia.</ref> The Aldermen group consists of four main islands: [[Hongiora]], [[Middle (island)|Middle]], [[Ruamahuanui]], and [[Ruamahuaiti]]. The smaller islands include [[Big Hump]], [[Little Hump]], [[Nga Horo Island]], Half Island and [[The Spire (New Zealand)|The Spire]]. Their combined area is {{convert|133.5|ha|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.linz.govt.nz/layer/53564-protected-areas/data/93629/|title=Data Table - Protected Areas - LINZ Data Service (recorded area 133.5463 ha)|publisher=[[Land Information New Zealand]]|accessdate=2019-09-03}}</ref> The islands are a forested nature reserve hosting rare species including the [[tuatara]]. Access is by permit only.

The Aldermen Islands are the remains of eroded [[Pliocene]] or [[Early Pleistocene]] [[lava dome]]s that form part of the Whitianga Group.<ref>{{cite gvp|vn=241806|title=Alderman Islands|accessdate=2020-06-12}}</ref> Approximately 18,000 years ago during the [[Last Glacial Maximum]] when sea levels were over 100 metres lower than present day levels, the islands were hilly features surrounded by a vast coastal plain. Sea levels began to rise 7,000 years ago, after which the islands separated from the rest of New Zealand.<ref name="Niwa">{{Cite web| title = Estuary origins |work=NIWA |date=6 June 2017 |url=https://niwa.co.nz/te-kuwaha/tools-and-resources/ng%C4%81-waihotanga-iho-the-estuary-monitoring-toolkit-for-iwi/estuary-origins | publisher = [[National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research]]| access-date = 3 November 2021}}</ref> When sea levels were lower, the [[Tairua River]] flowed south of the features, travelling eastwards towards the Pacific Ocean.<ref name="Niwa"/>

==See also== {{Portal|Islands}} * [[List of islands of New Zealand]] * [[List of islands]] * [[Desert island]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aldermen Islands}} [[Category:Uninhabited islands of New Zealand]] [[Category:Thames-Coromandel District]] [[Category:Islands of Waikato]] [[Category:Volcanoes of Waikato]] [[Category:Pliocene lava domes]] [[Category:Pleistocene lava domes]] [[Category:Lava domes of New Zealand]]