The Tapuae-o-Uenuku / Hector Mountains are a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

in the New Zealand region of

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

, near the resort town of Queenstown and just south of the more famous Remarkables. For most of its length, the mountains run adjacent to the southern reaches of

Lake Wakatipu Lake Wakatipu () is an inland lake (finger lake) in the South Island of New Zealand. It is in the southwest corner of the Otago region, near its boundary with Southland, New Zealand, Southland. ''Lake Wakatipu'' comes from the original Māori l ...

, before extending approximately further south, past the glacial

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and Rock (geology), rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a gla ...

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

on the southern end of the lake. On their eastern side, the mountains mark the edge of the Nevis valley, a largely tussocked area which saw significant activity during the

Otago gold rush The Otago gold rush (often called the Central Otago gold rush) was a gold rush that occurred during the 1860s in Central Otago, New Zealand. This was the country's biggest gold strike, and led to a rapid influx of foreign miners to the area � ...

of the 1860s. Historically, the mountains were an important ''mahinga kai'' (food gathering-place) for

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...

and other local

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

, who used the area to hunt for

weka The weka, also known as the Māori hen or woodhen (''Gallirallus australis'') is a flightless bird species of the rail family. It is endemic to New Zealand. Some authorities consider it as the only extant member of the genus '' Gallirallus''. ...

and gather tikumu while visiting the region. Many of the peaks in the range remain unnamed, a group which until 2013 included its highest point. Following a joint process between Ngāi Tahu and the

Central Otago District Council Central Otago District Council is the territorial authority for the Central Otago District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () a ...

, four new names were added to the region in 2013, including the adoption of the range's current dual name. This included the name of Mount Tūwhakarōria for the highest point of the range, as well as Te Karearea Peak for another prominent point as seen from

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially a ...

and Lake Te Kōhua for the small lake between the two.

Geology

As with the majority of mountain ranges in the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

, the Hector Mountains are the largely the result of

tectonic uplift Tectonic uplift is the orogeny, geologic uplift of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface that is attributed to plate tectonics. While Isostasy, isostatic response is important, an increase in the mean elevation of a region can only occur in response to ...

. The majority of this uplift occurred during the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Cardrona. This uplift cut the Nevis River off from its original outflow as a tributary of the

Mataura River The Mataura River is in the Southland Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is long. Description The river's headwaters are located in the Eyre Mountains to the south of Lake Wakatipu. From there it flows southeast towards Gore, New ...

, causing it to carve a new course north to the Kawarau River. More recently, the western reaches of the mountains have been altered as a result of glaciation during the

last glacial maximum The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), also referred to as the Last Glacial Coldest Period, was the most recent time during the Last Glacial Period where ice sheets were at their greatest extent between 26,000 and 20,000 years ago. Ice sheets covered m ...

, at which point the valley of present-day Lake Wakatipu was occupied by a large glacier. Although a separate ice tongue from this glacier extended eastward from Queenstown towards nearby

Arrowtown Arrowtown () is a historic gold mining town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. Arrowtown is located on the banks of the Arrow River ( Māori: ''Haehaenui'') approximately 7.5 km from State Highway 6. Arrowtown is loc ...

, the primary terminus of this glacier went as far south as Kingston, with the glacier's moraine forming the southern lake shore. This glacier eroded the western face of the Hector Mountains to a lesser extent than the Remarkables to the north, however the mountains still result in a sharp drop to the Lake below in places as a result most famously along the route of State Highway 6. Following the glacier's retreat, this moraine was the original outflow of Lake Wakatipu until an

alluvial fan An alluvial fan is an accumulation of sediments that fans outwards from a concentrated source of sediments, such as a narrow canyon emerging from an escarpment. They are characteristic of mountainous terrain in arid to Semi-arid climate, semiar ...

from Lorn Peak in the Hector Mountains blocked this exit, again rerouting the water flow to the Kawerau system.

Ecology

Owing to its relatively untouched environment and prominence in the local landscape, the Hector Mountains have a high conservation value. A study during the 1990s found over 500 species of

vascular plant Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes (, ) or collectively tracheophyta (; ), are plants that have lignin, lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They also have a specialized non-lignified Ti ...

growing across the mountains, representing a greater than expected ratio of species to families found in the region. This includes a wide range of plants native to New Zealand, such as Celmisia, Hebes, and Tussocks although there is disagreement as to whether the range of Hebe present are self-sustaining or sporadically introduced to exposed areas. Plant species are generally sparser in the more alpine portions of the range, with the higher northern portions of the range home to extensive

fellfield A fellfield or fell field comprises the environment of a slope, usually alpine or tundra, where the dynamics of frost (freeze and thaw cycles) and of wind give rise to characteristic plant forms in scree interstices. Soil dynamics The freeze-tha ...

ecosystems instead. These regions are still home to some plants, including the tikumu, however this is not to the same extent as lower reaches. While a number of species of lizard endemic to New Zealand are either confirmed or believed to live on the Hector Mountains including the

Nevis Nevis ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea that forms part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies. Nevis and the neighbouring island of Saint Kitts constitute the Saint Kitts and Nevis, Federation of Saint Kitts ...

, Cryptic, and McCann's skinks birds the majority of native animal life on the range. The mountains are a breeding site for the southern black-backed gull, while birds of prey such as the

kāhu The swamp harrier (''Circus approximans''), also known as the Australasian marsh harrier or Australasian harrier, is a large, slim bird of prey widely distributed across Australasia. In New Zealand, it is also known by the Māori name . It arrive ...

and kārearea (the latter of which gives its name to Te Karearea Peak) are frequently seen.

Kea The kea ( ; ; ''Nestor notabilis'') is a species of large parrot in the Family (biology), family Strigopidae that is endemic to the forested and alpine regions of the South Island of New Zealand. About long, it is mostly olive-green, with br ...

and

were historically common in the mountains, however their range has since been reduced due to predation by introduced pests. Evidence of habitation by

moa Moa are extinct giant flightless birds native to New Zealand. Moa or MOA may also refer to: Arts and media * Metal Open Air, a Brazilian heavy metal festival * MOA Museum of Art in Japan * The Moas, New Zealand film awards People * Moa ...

(most likely the

Upland moa The upland moa (''Megalapteryx didinus'') is an extinct species of moa that was endemic to New Zealand. The species was named by Richard Owen in 1883, and belongs to the ratites, a group of flightless birds with no keel on the sternum. Of all m ...

) and other extinct species of birds has been found, however the extent to which the area was inhabited by such species is still unknown. A variety of introduced species of mammal can also be found in the Hector Mountains, with detrimental affects on the traditional ecosystem including on the extent and variety of vegetation. In particular, low numbers of

chamois The chamois (; ) (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope native to the mountains in Southern Europe, from the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Apennines, the Dinarides, the Tatra Mountains, Tatra to the Carpa ...

are found across the range, as well as larger numbers of

hares Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The genu ...

Human interaction

The Hector Mountains have a long history of human use, and had a significant role in the early Māori settlement of the region. The adjacent Nevis valley was part of an ''ara tawhito'' (traditional travel route) which connected

Murihiku Murihiku is a region of the South Island in New Zealand, as used by the Māori people. Traditionally it was used to describe the portion of the South Island below the Waitaki River, but now is mostly used to describe the province of Southland. ...

(modern-day Southland) with Central Otago and other regions further north. The placement of the range along this route saw the eastern foothills used as a ''nohoanga'', or a seasonal occupation site used when Māori were passing through the area. This usage dates back to the 14th century to Waitaha habitation of the island, with evidence of "moa-hunter" huts near Schoolhouse creek in the eastern reaches of the Hector Mountains. Knowledge of the ara tawhito and use of the area for habitation continued through various iwi to inhabit the South Island, through to the present day Ngāi Tahu who arrived in the area as late as the 18th century. For all Māori who travelled through the Nevis, the range held importance as a ''mahinga kai'' (food gathering site), for its population of weka and various forms of edible vegetation. The food sources available on the mountains were able to sustain Māori on their way through the region, simplifying the journey through. The foothills of the Hector Mountains were also significant to early

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

. The range was largely affected by the

of the 1860s, which saw miners flock to the Nevis in search of gold and a small town established in the foothills of the range.

Sluicing In syntax, sluicing is a type of ellipsis that occurs in both direct and indirect interrogative clauses. The ellipsis is introduced by a ''wh''-expression, whereby in most cases, everything except the ''wh''-expression is elided from the clause. ...

sites are found along the eastern end of the range, many of which had the inadvertent impact of destroying archaeological evidence of earlier habitation. Some seventy years later, the southern reaches of the range were used by the New Zealand Alpine Club as an early site for

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...

in the region. Following the discovery that the range allowed for skiing at a relatively low altitude, a hut was built and the area turned into a rudimentary ski field. Although a tow was eventually installed, the area did not develop further due to the Southland Ski Club relocating to establish a ski field at

Coronet Peak Coronet Peak is a commercial skifield in Queenstown, New Zealand located seven kilometres west of Arrowtown, on the southern slopes of the 1,649-metre peak which shares its name. A popular ski resort in the Southern Hemisphere, Coronet Peak ...

in the 1950s due to its more reliable snow. The Hector Mountains continue to be a waypoint for travellers passing through the region to this day. Unlike earlier travellers however, the main route past the range State Highway 6 now passes the western flank of the mountains. Known colloquially as the Devil's staircase, the route was built during the Great Depression and opened during 1936, and remains a popular lookout point.

Name

The Māori name, (also recorded as ) references

Uenuku Uenuku (or Uenuku-Kōpako, also given to some who are named after him) is an atua of rainbows and a prominent ancestor in Māori tradition. Māori believed that the rainbow's appearance represented an omen, and one kind of yearly offering made ...

, an

atua Atua are the gods and spirits of the Polynesian people such as the Māori or the Hawaiians (see also ). The literal meaning of the Polynesian word is "power" or "strength" and so the concept is similar to that of '' mana''. Many of the atua ...

(the god of rainbows) and prominent ancestor for Ngāi Tahu. The range shares this name with Tapuae-o-Uenuku, the highest peak of the

Kaikōura Ranges The Kaikōura Ranges are two parallel ranges of mountains located in the Canterbury Region in the northeast of the South Island of New Zealand. The two ranges are visible from a great distance, including from the southern coast of the North Isla ...

in the upper South Island, although it is unclear whether the two share a common etymology. In the 19th century,

explorers named the range the Hector Mountains in honour of

James Hector Sir James Hector (16 March 1834 – 6 November 1907) was a Scottish-New Zealand geologist, naturalist, and surgeon who accompanied the Palliser Expedition as a surgeon and geologist. He went on to have a lengthy career as a government employed ...

, a New Zealand naturalist and scientist at the time. In 2013, the range was given an official dual name, Tapuae-o-Uenuku / Hector Mountains, following a joint process between

and the

, which also resulted in the naming of three previously-unnamed features of the range.

References

{{reflist Mountain ranges of Otago Queenstown-Lakes District