New Zealand's North Island and South Island
New Zealand, known as the "land of long white clouds", is located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, 1500 kilometers away from the east coast of Australia in the west, and 1000 kilometers away from Tonga, Fiji and other countries in the north, isolated in the South Pacific. New Zealand is composed of two large islands, the North Island and the South Island, and the nearby Stewart Island, Chatham Islands, Campbell Island, Auckland Islands, etc., with a land area of 270,000 square kilometers (the exclusive economic zone of the ocean covers an area of 1.2 million square kilometers), which is the second largest island country in the South Pacific (second only to Papua New Guinea). Located 32 kilometres south of the South Island and covering an area of 1,375 square kilometres, Stewart Island is New Zealand's third largest island; chatham Islands is New Zealand's closest to the International Date Line (located near 176 degrees west longitude) and one of the first places in the world to usher in a new day; Campbell Island is one of the highest latitude islands in the South Pacific (at 52.5 degrees south latitude). With an area of 113,700 square kilometers, New Zealand's North Island is the 12th largest island in the world, with low hills and hills, volcanoes and hot springs. The South Island covers an area of 154,000 square kilometers, is the world's 10th largest island, the central and western parts are the Southern Alps, which run 320 kilometers from north to south, the highest peak, Mount Cook, is 3,764 meters above sea level (only 12 meters lower than Mount Fuji in Japan, which is the highest mountain in New Zealand), there are more than 300 large Xiaoice rivers, of which there are glaciers near Mount Cook, near which there are glaciers near Mount Cook; the eastern slope of the Southern Alps is gentler, with wide foothills, and the eastern coast is larger than the Canterbury Plain.
Location map of New Zealand
Most of New Zealand has a temperate oceanic climate, the North Island latitude is relatively low, is a subtropical oceanic climate; the annual precipitation throughout New Zealand is more than 650 mm, and the southwest of the South Island is rich in precipitation due to the windward slope of the westerly wind belt, with annual precipitation of more than 5000 mm, and some valleys can even reach 15000 mm. Abundant precipitation makes New Zealand densely forested, with a forest area of more than 100,000 square kilometers (including nearly 20,000 square kilometers of artificial forest) and a forest coverage rate of 35%. The dense forests have earned New Zealand the nickname "Green Island".
New Zealand is located in the Pacific Ring of Volcanic Seismic Belt, multi-volcanic, earthquake; located in the south-central part of the North Island, Ruape Lake Volcano is an active volcano at an altitude of 2797 meters, is New Zealand's largest and most active volcano in the world, in 1945 an eruption lasted only one year, nearby hot springs, geysers. New Zealand is rich in mineral resources, including coal, iron, gold, silver, construction stone, clay, natural gas, etc., and can export coal, iron ore, clay, sulfur and other minerals.
New Zealand's highest mountain, Cook Peak
New Zealand's endemic organisms and conservation
New Zealand's special geographical location makes New Zealand one of the last areas where humans gather, and wildlife has developed distinctive species due to long-term isolation; New Zealand's native animals have no mammals except two kinds of bats, and birds are the most ecologically niche animals; New Zealand's native forest birds (excluding marine birds) are not flying and have a low reproductive rate; in the 18th century, with the entry of carnivorous mammals such as cats, mice, and ferrets brought by white Europeans, native forest birds were predestined, and many birds were endangered The New Zealand government attaches great importance to the protection of native birds, relocating some birds at any cost, and artificially killing rats and ferrets in the habitat of some rare birds. Since 2005, the New Zealand bird protection organization "Forest and Birds" has begun to conduct the annual "Bird of the Year" selection activity, so that more people can pay attention to the rare birds in New Zealand. New Zealand attaches great importance to the construction and protection of the ecological environment, and 30% of the country's land area is classified as national parks and nature reserves, and many national parks are included in UNESCO's World Heritage List, such as the "Tevahipunamo World Heritage Site" (located in the southwest of New Zealand's South Island) composed of Cook Peak National Park, Mount Aspiring National Park, Westland National Park and Fiordland National Park.
New Zealand's famous endemic species are silver fern, kiwi, parrot, New Zealand crowned crow, yellow-eyed penguin, and parrot. Silver fern is a kind of fern plant in the family Quercus, only grown in New Zealand forests, because the back of its leaves can reflect the brilliance of the stars and moons and named; New Zealanders believe that silver fern can reflect its national spirit, is considered to be a unique symbol of New Zealand, on the new Zealand national emblem, banknotes can be seen in the silver fern pattern, but also designated as New Zealand's "national flower".
Silver fern in New Zealand
New Zealand crowned crow, also known as "drooping ear crow", is a bird of the genus Finches, is a species endemic to New Zealand, inhabiting only the forests of New Zealand, its beak has blue hanging flesh, because of its loud and good sound, the local people call it "organ bird"; new Zealand crowned crow has two species: North Island drooping ear crow and South Island drooping ear crow, the South Island drooping ear crow has been extinct in 1967, and there are currently more than 3,000 North Island drooping ear crows. The New Zealand crested crow was selected as New Zealand's "Bird of the Year" for 2016. The back of the New Zealand coin of $50 is painted with the new Crowned Crow.
New Zealand crown crow on $50 on New Zealand plastic coins
Yellow-eyed penguin is one of the rarest and oldest penguins in the world, is an endemic species of New Zealand, the main habitat is in the South Island of New Zealand Otago Peninsula coastal and nearby islets, because of its pale yellow pupils and named, in New Zealand 2015 edition of 5 yuan on its pattern; yellow-eyed penguin 90% of its food is sea fish, generally will be 7 to 13 kilometers offshore waters foraging, nests are mostly located in coastal forests. The yellow-eyed penguin, whose main threat is habitat loss, predator appearance and environmental change, is one of the most endangered species in the world, with only 225 pairs of yellow-eyed penguins found on all islands in New Zealand in 2018. The yellow-eyed penguin was named New Zealand's "Bird of the Year" in 2019.
Yellow-eyed penguin on a New Zealand note of $5
Kiwi bird also known as kiwi, chivi bird, is a wingless bird genus of wingless birds, is a unique species in New Zealand, because of its call "several -dimensional-" and named, the existing large kiwi, large spotted kiwi, small spotted kiwi, ocario kiwi and north island brown kiwi bird five species; kiwi bird is small and stout, long and pointed beak, feathers like hair, can not fly, mainly eat insects, earthworms, spiders, fish and shrimp, ground fruit, lazy nature, sleep 20 hours a day, travel at night to forage, life span of up to 30 years. Due to the strong protection of kiwi birds by the New Zealand government, the population is relatively large, and they can still be seen in Stewart Island and a few forests in New Zealand, and they are regarded as New Zealand's "national birds".
New Zealand's national bird "Kiwi"
Owl parrot is a kind of bird of the parrot family Owl genus, is a rare bird unique to New Zealand, only inhabits the forests of New Zealand, it has an owl-like face, loves to travel at night, although it can not fly but is good at climbing trees, is the only parrot in the world that cannot fly, fat, weighs 950 to 4000 kg, is one of the longest-lived birds, can live to 60 years old. The parrot population has declined sharply since the 19th century, with fewer than 50 left in the 1970s; in 1989 New Zealand began running the "Owl Restoration Program", moving all the parrots off-site to islands without cats, mice, ferrets and other predators, and by 2020 the number of parrots has returned to 211. The Owl is one of the closest species in the world to extinction and was voted New Zealand's "Bird of the Year" in 2008 and 2020.
Owl parrot
New Zealander
New Zealand has a history of human settlement began in the 14th century; Maori began to settle in New Zealand in 1350; in 1642, the Dutchman Albert Tasman discovered the west coast of New Zealand during an ocean expedition and named the land after his hometown; in 1765, the British Navy James Cook first set foot on this land, after which a large number of British came to Establish Settlements in New Zealand; in 1856 New Zealand became a British colony, and in 1907 it became an autonomous region of the British Commonwealth. It became fully independent in 1947. New Zealand had about 120,000 inhabitants in 1840, of which 100,000 were Maori, reaching 200,000 in the 1880s; after New Zealand's independence in 1947, with the entry of a large number of Indians, Chinese, Filipinos and Japanese, the population of New Zealand has reached 2.33 million, the population of New Zealand has exceeded 3 million in 1974, and exceeded 4 million in 2003, and the current population is close to 5 million.
Coat of arms of New Zealand
According to the 2018 New Zealand Census, New Zealand residents are mainly composed of European descent (68% of the total population), Māori (16%), Asian (15%) and so on. European-New Zealanders are predominantly British, with prominent historical figures such as Ernest Rutherford and Edmund Hillary. Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937), born in New Zealand in 1871, studied at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch as a young man, won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908, and is known as the father of nuclear physics. Edmund Hillary (1919-2008) was an English-New Zealander and world-famous mountaineer who successfully reached the summit from the south side of Mount Everest (Nepal) in 1953, becoming the first person in the world to conquer Mount Everest; his head is on a New Zealand note of $5.
Physicist Ernest Rutherford on $100 in New Zealand
New Zealand mountaineer Edmund Hillary clinton on $5
Maori are the earliest inhabitants of New Zealand and are now the second largest ethnic group in New Zealand; Maori are of the Polynesian race, speaking The Māori (one of the legal languages of New Zealand) of the Polynesian language family of the Austronesian language family, and are mainly characterized by medium to strong stature, light or dark copper skin, a high face, prominent nosebones, straight or wavy hair, and slightly more male beards. Maori moved to New Zealand from the polynesian islands in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean in the 14th century, mainly engaged in marine fishing and other productive activities, and after the 18th century, they were slaughtered by British colonists and their population was sharply reduced, and the population gradually recovered after New Zealand's autonomy in 1907, and the New Zealand census had 770,000 people in 2018. Māori are good at wood carving, love song and dance, and treat guests with "nose touching ceremonies", and the host and guests have to touch the tip of the nose three times. The prominent Maori historical figure is Apilana Ngano (1874-1950), who led the New Zealand Maori Cultural Revival Movement in the 1920s and served as Minister of New Zealand Maori Affairs, with his portrait on the New Zealand banknote of $50.
New Zealand Maori politician Apilana Ngano on $50
New Zealand Maori
Agriculture and animal husbandry-based economically developed countries
New Zealand is one of the only two developed countries in the southern hemisphere, with a per capita GDP of 40,634 US dollars (International Monetary Fund, international exchange rate) in 2019, ranking 23rd in the world, very close to the United Kingdom and Japan; in 2019, New Zealand's GDP reached 204.67 billion US dollars (International Monetary Fund, international exchange rate), ranking 51st in the world, higher than large countries such as Algeria and Kazakhstan. New Zealand is a "country with a very high human development index", with a human development index of 0.91 in 2018, ranking 14th in the world (the United Nations Development Programme's "Human Development Report 2019"), higher than the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries.
Ranches in New Zealand
New Zealand's industrial structure is quite different from most developed countries, which is manifested in the relatively high proportion of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery; in 2017, the added value of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery in New Zealand accounted for 5.8% of GDP, and in the same year, the Proportion of the United Kingdom was 0.65%, the United States was 0.94%, France was 1.54%, Spain was 2.8%, and Japan was 1.2%. New Zealand animal husbandry is developed, the current annual inventory of more than 30 million sheep, more than 7 million cows, more than 3 million beef cattle, 1 million red deer, the export of mutton, antler velvet world first, coarse wool world second, mutton exports account for 1/3 of the world's total exports; New Zealand climate is mild, rainfall is sufficient, grass grows all year round, because of the special geographical location can resist the invasion of foreign diseases, there has never been mad cow disease, foot-and-mouth disease and other epidemics, beef and mutton and dairy products green and healthy, welcomed by the international market. New Zealand also produces and exports kiwifruit, citrus, apples, New Zealand pears, strawberries, blueberries and other fruits; since the introduction of kiwifruit from China in the early 20th century, New Zealand has been the world's largest kiwi exporter, and 70% of the kiwifruit on the international market comes from New Zealand during the sales period from May to December every year.
Kiwi fruit from New Zealand
New Zealand's agro-processing industry is very developed, is currently the world's largest exporter of dairy products (mainly whole milk powder, skimmed milk powder, liquid milk, etc.), accounting for more than 1/3 of the total global dairy exports, full milk powder exports account for 2/3 of the global market! New Zealand's dairy exports reached US$14.5 billion in 2019, accounting for around 27% of the country's total exports, making it New Zealand's most foreign exchange-earning commodity. New Zealand is also one of the world's leading wine exporters.
Bagged milk powder produced in New Zealand
New Zealand City Tour
80% of New Zealand's population is concentrated in large and small towns, with the main cities being Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton, Dunedin, Tauranga and others. Located on the coast of the northern north of New Zealand's North Island (37 degrees south latitude), Auckland is New Zealand's largest metropolis, New Zealand's economic, cultural, shipping center and largest seaport, with a population of nearly 1.5 million, beautiful scenery and pleasant climate, is one of the world's top ten most livable cities, because of the world's largest number of sailboats and has the reputation of "sail capital"; ranked third in the "2019 Global Urban Quality of Life Ranking" released by Mercer Consulting. Auckland is a major transportation hub in the Southern Hemisphere and one of the major seaports in the Southern Hemisphere, Auckland International Airport is New Zealand's busiest airport, flying to Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Taipei, Tokyo, Osaka, Singapore, London, Sydney, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, Honolulu, Seoul, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Manila and other cities. Founded in 1883, the University of Auckland is the highest quality comprehensive public university in New Zealand, ranking 81st in the 2021 QS World University Rankings and 1st in New Zealand. Auckland's landmark is the Sky Tower (328 metres high), the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere to date, built in 1996. Auckland is a sister city with Jinzhou City and Nanning City in China, and sister cities with Guangzhou City and Ningbo City in China. Auckland City has a high brand value, ranking 180th in the 2019 Global 500 Cities list.
Auckland, New Zealand's largest metropolis
New Zealand's capital Wellington is located on the north shore of the Cook Strait at the southern end of the North Island, with a population of 450,000, which is the second largest city in New Zealand after Auckland; in 1815, a large number of British immigrants came here to establish a settlement, named the town after the famous British general Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wellington), became the colonial capital of New Zealand in 1865, and became the capital of New Zealand in 1947; Wellington is also the cultural center of New Zealand, with Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington Polytechnic, Messey University Wellington and other universities. Victoria University of Wellington is a comprehensive public university established in 1897, with distinguished alumni such as 2000 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry Alan McDermid, ranking 215th in the QS World University Rankings 2020 and third among New Zealand universities. Wellington City has a high brand value, ranking 225th in the 2019 Global 500 Cities list. Wellington is a sister city with Beijing, Tianjin and Xiamen in China.
Wellington, the capital of New Zealand
Christchurch is the third largest city in New Zealand, Christchurch, the Chinese abbreviation, belongs to the Canterbury District (one of the first administrative districts of New Zealand), with a population of 380,000; Christchurch is located on the east coast of the South Island, with beautiful scenery, strong artistic and cultural atmosphere, has the reputation of "Garden City"; Christchurch has the University of Canterbury, Lincoln University of New Zealand, Christchurch College of Education and other famous universities, the University of Canterbury is a comprehensive public university founded in 1873, well-known alumni include Ernest Rutherford, the father of nuclear atomic physics. Ranked 227th in the QS World University Rankings 2020. Christchurch International Airport on the outskirts of Christchurch is New Zealand's second busiest airport, with flights to Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Singapore, Sydney, Dubai, Wellington, Auckland and other cities. Because Christchurch is one of the large cities with high latitudes in the southern hemisphere (located at 43.5 degrees south latitude), it has become one of the main material supply bases for Antarctic scientific expeditions, and Antarctic exploration warrior Robert Scott set out from Christchurch to explore antarctica in 1910, and built the "International Antarctic Center" (Christchurch) to provide services for Antarctic scientific expeditions in New Zealand, the United States and Italy. Christchurch city has a high brand value, ranking 296th in the 2019 Global 500 Cities list. Christchurch is a sister city with Wuhan and Lanzhou in China.
Christchurch
New Zealand's famous tourist resort town Queenstown (also known as Queenstown) is located on the north shore of Lake Wakati, surrounded by the South Island Alps, belongs to the South Island Otago Region, with a population of more than 10,000 people, Queenstown International Airport (can fly to Auckland, Wellington, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Gold Coast and other domestic and foreign cities); Queenstown is one of new Zealand's most rugged terrain, the most beautiful scenery, is New Zealand's most famous outdoor adventure activities, has new Zealand's "adventure capital" reputation Lake Wakati is the third largest lake in New Zealand, with a radius of 291 square kilometers, and the lake and mountains are beautiful. In 1988, New Zealanders created the world's first commercial bungee jumping venue on the Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown. The main attractions in Queenstown are bungee jumping, rafting, jet boating, mountain biking, mountain skiing and so on.
Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown