The Spenser Mountains is a topographic
landform in the northern
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasma ...
of
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
. Located at the southern end of the
Nelson Lakes National Park
Nelson Lakes National Park is in the South Island of New Zealand, at the northern end of the Southern Alps. It was formed after the passing of the National Parks Act in 1952. It was created in 1956 (one of four created in the 1950s). The park c ...
and north of the
Lewis Pass
Lewis Pass (el. 907 m.) is a mountain pass in the South Island of New Zealand.
The northernmost of the three main passes across the Southern Alps, it is higher than the Haast Pass, and slightly lower than Arthur's Pass. State Highway 7 trav ...
they form a natural
border
Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political bo ...
between the
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...
and
Tasman
Tasman most often refers to Abel Tasman (1603–1659), Dutch explorer.
Tasman may also refer to:
Animals and plants
* Tasman booby
* Tasman flax-lily
* Tasman parakeet (disambiguation)
* Tasman starling
* Tasman whale
People
* Tasman (name), ...
regions. Several peaks are named after characters in
Edmund Spenser’s allegorical poem,
The Faerie Queene
''The Faerie Queene'' is an English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. Books IIII were first published in 1590, then republished in 1596 together with books IVVI. ''The Faerie Queene'' is notable for its form: at over 36,000 lines and over 4,000 st ...
. Many of the early explorers were evidently literate men. For example, Frederick Weld (a surveyor) named
Lake Tennyson
Lake Tennyson (elevation ) is a glacial high-country lake in Canterbury, New Zealand. The first European settler to see the lake was Frederick Weld in 1853, who also named it. The headwaters of the Waiau Toa / Clarence River are just to the nort ...
;
William Travers (a solicitor) named the Spensers and Faerie Queene;
Julius Haast named Mt Una.
Within the range prominent peaks include
Mount Una
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...
and
Mount Humboldt
Mont Humboldt, or Mount Humboldt is a mountain in New Caledonia, Melanesia, and is the second tallest mountain in the region, being just ten metres short of Mont Panié.
Etymological origins
Its name is derived from Prussian explorer Alexande ...
. The Spenser Mountains are the northern limit of the
glaciers
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such a ...
within the
Southern Alps
The Southern Alps (; officially Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana) is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The name "Souther ...
.
Much of the forest cover is beech/
podocarp
Podocarpaceae is a large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, known in English as podocarps, comprising about 156 species of evergreen trees and shrubs.James E. Eckenwalder. 2009. ''Conifers of the World''. Portland, Oregon: Timber Pre ...
with understory of a variety of ferns and shrubs;
crown fern (''Lomaria discolor'') is one of the dominant understory ferns.
[C. Michael Hogan. 2009]
See also
*
Rimu
References
*
Thomas Adolphus Bowden Thomas Adolphus Bowden (26 July 1824 – 24 June 1906) was an English-born New Zealand Anglican clergyman, farmer, teacher and educationalist. He was born in London on 26 July 1824.
References
1824 births
1906 deaths
New Zealand farmers
...
and
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 employe ...
. 1869. ''Manual of New Zealand geography''
* C. Michael Hogan. 2009
''Crown Fern: Blechnum discolor'', Globaltwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg
Notes
Mountain ranges of Canterbury, New Zealand
Mountain ranges of the Tasman District
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