World Heritage Identification Number: 551
World Heritage since: 1990
Category: Natural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Continent: Oceania
UNESCO World Region: Asia and the Pacific
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Te Wahipounamu - A Unique World Heritage Landscape in South West New Zealand
Te Wahipounamu, meaning "the place where the greenstone comes from" in Māori, is a unique World Heritage Site located in the southwest corner of the South Island of New Zealand. Inscribed in 1990, this landscape has been sculpted by numerous glacial periods into a breathtaking array of geographical features, including fjords, rugged coastlines, towering cliffs, pristine lakes, and cascading waterfalls.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
The landscape in this park, situated in south-west New Zealand, has been shaped by successive glaciations into fjords, rocky coasts, towering cliffs, lakes and waterfalls. Two-thirds of the park is covered with southern beech and podocarps, some of which are over 800 years old. The kea, the only alpine parrot in the world, lives in the park, as does the rare and endangered takahe, a large flightless bird.
Encyclopedia Record: Te Wahipounamu
Te Wāhipounamu is a World Heritage Site in the south west corner of the South Island of New Zealand.Additional Site Details
Area: 2,600,000 hectares
(viii) — Outstanding example representing major earth stages
(ix) — Outstanding example representing ecological and biological processes
(x) — Contains most important habitats for biodiversity
Coordinates: -45.03602778 , 167.3196111
