Doubtful Sound / Patea is a
fiord
In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...
in
Fiordland
Fiordland is a geographical region of New Zealand in the south-western corner of the South Island, comprising the westernmost third of Southland. Most of Fiordland is dominated by the steep sides of the snow-capped Southern Alps, deep lakes, ...
, in the far south west of New Zealand. It is located in the same region as the smaller but more famous and accessible
Milford Sound / Piopiotahi
Milford Sound / Piopiotahi is a fiord in the south west of New Zealand's South Island within Fiordland National Park, Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) Marine Reserve, and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site. It has been judged the world's top tr ...
. It took second place after Milford Sound as New Zealand's most famous tourism destination.
At long, Doubtful Sound / Patea is the second longest, and with a depth of up to the deepest of the South Island's fiords. In comparison with Milford Sound, it is more widespread, with the cliffs not as dramatically tall and near vertical. However, the U-shaped profile of the fiord is obvious, in particular on the two innermost of the main fiord's arms and the hanging side valleys along the main fiord.
Like most of Fiordland, Doubtful Sound receives a high amount of rainfall, ranging from an annual average of . The vegetation on the mountainous landscape surrounding the fiord is dense native rainforest.
History
Doubtful Sound was named 'Doubtful Harbour' in 1770 by
Captain Cook
James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...
, who did not enter the inlet as he was uncertain whether it was navigable under sail. It was later renamed Doubtful Sound by
whaler
A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales.
Terminology
The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...
s and
sealers, although it is not technically a
sound
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
but a fiord.
A Spanish scientific expedition commanded by
Alessandro Malaspina
Alejandro Malaspina (November 5, 1754 – April 9, 1810) was a Tuscan explorer who spent most of his life as a Spanish naval officer. Under a Spanish royal commission, he undertook a voyage around the world from 1786 to 1788, then, from 1789 t ...
visited Doubtful Sound in February 1793 to conduct experiments measuring the force of gravity using a
pendulum
A pendulum is a weight suspended from a pivot so that it can swing freely. When a pendulum is displaced sideways from its resting, equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the ...
, a part of the effort to establish a new metric system. The officers of the expedition, which included
Felipe Bauzá y Cañas, a cartographer, also made the first chart of the entrance and lower parts of the Sound, naming features of it. Today these form a unique cluster containing most of the Spanish names on the map of New Zealand: Febrero Point,
Bauza Island
Bauza Island () lies immediately south of the much larger Secretary Island in the outer reaches of Doubtful Sound / Patea, in Fiordland National Park on New Zealand's South Island. The less than one kilometre wide Patea passage to the south of t ...
and the Nee Islets, Pendulo Reach, and Malaspina Reach.
Following the passage of the
Ngai Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998
Ngai (also called Múrungu or Enkai) is the monolithic Supreme God in the spirituality of the Kikuyu (or Gikuyu) and the closely related Embu, Meru and Kamba groups of Kenya, and the Maasai of Kenya and Tanzania. Ngai is creator of the universe ...
, the name of the fiord was officially altered to Doubtful Sound / Patea.
Geography
Doubtful Sound lies deep within the
Fiordland National Park
Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest corner of the South Island of New Zealand. It is by far the largest of the 13 national parks in New Zealand, with an area of , and a major part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage Site. The park i ...
, about from the nearest inhabited place, the small town of
Manapouri
Manapouri is a small town in Southland / Fiordland, in the southwest corner of the South Island, in New Zealand. The township is the westernmost municipality in New Zealand. Located at the edge of the Fiordland National Park, on the eastern ...
, and is surrounded by mountainous terrain with peaks typically reaching . Along the coast, there are no settlements for about in either direction.
There are three distinct arms to the sound, which all extend to the south from the main fiord. From the major conflux of water just south of
Secretary Island
Secretary Island () is an island in southwestern New Zealand, lying entirely within Fiordland National Park. Roughly triangular in shape, it lies between Doubtful Sound / Patea in the south and Te Awa-o-Tū / Thompson Sound in the north, with i ...
, these arms are:
# First Arm, the shortest at long,
# Crooked Arm, roughly halfway along the sound and the longest at long,
# Hall Arm ( long), which branches off from the Sound's terminus at Deep Cove next to the prominent Commander Peak.
Crooked Arm reaches to within of
Te Rā / Dagg Sound
Te Rā / Dagg Sound is a narrow fiord located in Fiordland, New Zealand. It lies south of Doubtful Sound / Patea and north of Te Puaitaha / Breaksea Sound. Whales frequent the waters out from the entrance of the fiord, close to the edge of the c ...
, almost cutting off a landmass of about .
The Sound is the site of several large
waterfall
A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf.
Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...
s, notably Helena Falls at
Deep Cove and the
Browne Falls
__NOTOC__
Browne Falls is a waterfall above Doubtful Sound, which is located in Fiordland National Park, New Zealand. In a temperate rain forest, the falls cascade down to the fiord near Hall Arm. Heights of 619 metres and 836 metres have been g ...
, which have a fall of over . The steep hills surrounding the main fiord and its arms are known for their hundreds of waterfalls during the rainy season.
Doubtful Sound contains about a dozen smaller islands, with the more notable ones being
Elizabeth Island, Fergusson Island, Bauza Island, and the Shelter Islands. Parts of the sound on the west side of Elizabeth Island are protected by the
Taipari Roa (Elizabeth Island) Marine Reserve
Taipari Roa (Elizabeth Island) Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of around Elizabeth Island, in the inner Doubtful Sound / Patea of Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 2005 and is administered by th ...
.
The last quarter of the sound closest to the sea is dominated by islands, the major one being Secretary Island to the north. At the southernmost tip of the island, Doubtful Sound opens up as a confluence of 5 bodies of water. From the western seaward end and going clockwise, these are:
# Seaward end of Doubtful Sound, often referred to as "The Gut"
#
Te Awa-o-Tū / Thompson Sound
Thompson Sound (; officially Te Awa-o-Tū / Thompson Sound) is a fiord of the South Island of New Zealand. It is one of the fiords that form the coast of Fiordland.
Geography
The fiord is connected at its farthest extent with Pendulo Reach ...
#
Kaikiekie / Bradshaw Sound
# Continuation of Doubtful Sound to Deep Cove (Malaspina Reach)
# First Arm
The narrow, shallower area of the sound between Bauza Island and Secretary Island ("The Gut") offers more shelter than areas further to the west and towards the sea. It is a popular fishing and mooring location and is a haven for crayfish.
Thompson Sound and Bradshaw Sound join in a short stretch named "Pendulo Reach" southeast of Secretary Island, and containing the tiny Seymour Island.
Access to the sound is either by sea or via the isolated
Wilmot Pass
The Wilmot Pass is a high pass on the main divide of New Zealand's South Island. It connects Doubtful Sound, a deep indentation in the coast of Fiordland, to the valley of the West Arm of Lake Manapouri. The pass is named after E. H. Wilmot, a fo ...
road from the
Manapouri Power Station
Manapōuri Power Station is an underground hydroelectric power station on the western arm of Lake Manapouri in Fiordland National Park, in the South Island of New Zealand. At 854 MW installed capacity (although limited to 800 MW due to ...
. Most areas of the sound itself are accessible only by sea, however, as the road network in this area of New Zealand is sparse or nonexistent, as is the human population.
Charles John Lyttelton, 10th
Viscount Cobham
Viscount Cobham is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was created in 1718. Owing to its special remainder, the title has passed through several families. Since 1889, it has been held by members of the Lyttelton family.
The barony a ...
,
Governor-General of New Zealand
The governor-general of New Zealand ( mi, te kāwana tianara o Aotearoa) is the viceregal representative of the monarch of New Zealand, currently King Charles III. As the King is concurrently the monarch of 14 other Commonwealth realms and li ...
(1957–1962) wrote about this part of Fiordland:
:''"There are just a few areas left in the world where no human has ever set foot. That one of them should be in a country so civilized and so advanced as New Zealand may seem incredible, unless one has visited the south-west corner of the South Island. Jagged razor backed mountains rear their heads into the sky. More than 200 days of rain a year ensure not a tree branch is left bare and brown, moss and epiphytes drape every nook. The forest is intensely green. This is big country... one day peaceful, a study in green and blue, the next melancholy and misty, with low cloud veiling the tops... an awesome place, with its granite precipices, its hanging valleys, its earthquake faults and its thundering cascades."''
Flora and fauna
Doubtful Sound (like many of the fiords in the area) is unusual in that it contains two distinct layers of water that scarcely mix. The surface layer , referred to as the Low Salinity Layer or LSL, consists of diluted seawater with a typical salinity value of less than 10 psu. This layer receives fresh water fed from the high inflows from the surrounding mountains, and stained brown with tannins from the forest. The outflow of freshwater from the tailrace discharge from the Manapouri Power Station also influences the thickness of the LSL. Below the LSL is a layer of warmer, undiluted seawater with a salinity value of around 35 psu. The dark tannins in the fresh water layer make it difficult for light to penetrate. Thus, many deep-sea species grow in the comparatively shallow depths of the Sound.
Such species include
black coral
Antipatharians, also known as black corals or thorn corals, are an order of soft deep-water corals. These corals can be recognized by their jet-black or dark brown chitin skeletons, surrounded by the polyps (part of coral that is alive). Antipat ...
''Antipathes fiordensis'', which is normally found at depths of but can be found at just in Doubtful Sound and is within the range of qualified recreational divers.
The catchment basin of Doubtful Sound is generally steep terrain that is heavily forested except for locations where surface rock exposures are extensive.
Nothofagus
''Nothofagus'', also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 43 species of trees and shrubs native to the Southern Hemisphere in southern South America (Chile, Argentina) and Australasia (east and southeast Australia, New Zealand, New Gui ...
trees are dominant in many locations. In the understory there are a wide variety of shrubs and
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
s, including the
crown fern
''Lomaria discolor'', synonym ''Blechnum discolor'', commonly called crown fern (Māori: piupiu), is a species of fern in the family Blechnaceae. This species is endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country i ...
, ''
Blechnum discolor
''Lomaria discolor'', synonym ''Blechnum discolor'', commonly called crown fern (Māori: piupiu), is a species of fern in the family Blechnaceae. This species is endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country i ...
''.
The fiord is home to one of the southernmost populations of
bottlenose dolphin
Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the common ...
s. The Doubtful Sound bottlenoses have formed a very insular subgroup of only about 70 individuals, with none having been observed to leave or enter the Sound during a multi-year monitoring regime. Their social grouping is thus extremely close, which is also partly attributed to the difficult and unusual features of their habitat, which is much colder than the habitats of other bottlenose groups and is also overlaid by the freshwater layer. Recently (2000s), there has been growing concern that the population is in significant decline, with calf survival rates having halved, as well as being noticeably lower than in captivity or in other New Zealand environments. The reasons for this are unclear, though increased tourism and the fresh-water discharge from the Manapouri Power Station (see Hydroelectricity section below) are considered potential causes.
Other wildlife to be found in Doubtful Sound includes
fur seal
Fur seals are any of nine species of pinnipeds belonging to the subfamily Arctocephalinae in the family '' Otariidae''. They are much more closely related to sea lions than true seals, and share with them external ears (pinnae), relatively lon ...
s and
penguin
Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...
s, or even large
whale
Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...
s.
Southern right whale
The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...
s and
humpback whale
The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hump ...
s are the most frequently seen especially the later. Others include
minke whale
The minke whale (), or lesser rorqual, is a species complex of baleen whale. The two species of minke whale are the common (or northern) minke whale and the Antarctic (or southern) minke whale. The minke whale was first described by the Danish n ...
,
sperm whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...
and some
giant beaked whale
The four-toothed whales or giant beaked whales are beaked whales in the genus ''Berardius''. They include Arnoux's beaked whale (''Berardius arnuxii'') in cold Southern Hemispheric waters, and Baird's beaked whale (''Berardius bairdii'') in the ...
s). Orcas (
killer whale
The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white pa ...
s) and
long-finned pilot whale
The long-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala melas'') is a large species of oceanic dolphin. It shares the genus '' Globicephala'' with the short-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala macrorhynchus''). Long-finned pilot whales are known as such bec ...
s can be found also. The waters of Doubtful Sound are also home to an abundance of sea creatures, including many species of
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
,
starfish
Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish ...
,
sea anemone
Sea anemones are a group of predation, predatory marine invertebrates of the order (biology), order Actiniaria. Because of their colourful appearance, they are named after the ''Anemone'', a terrestrial flowering plant. Sea anemones are classifi ...
s, and
coral
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...
s. It is perhaps best known for its
black coral
Antipatharians, also known as black corals or thorn corals, are an order of soft deep-water corals. These corals can be recognized by their jet-black or dark brown chitin skeletons, surrounded by the polyps (part of coral that is alive). Antipat ...
trees which occur in unusually shallow water for what is normally a deep-water species. The sound has been identified as an
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
by
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
because it is a breeding site for
Fiordland penguin
The Fiordland penguin (''Eudyptes pachyrhynchus''), also known as the Fiordland crested penguin (in Māori, ''tawaki'' or pokotiwha), is a crested penguin species endemic to New Zealand. It currently breeds along the south-western coasts of New ...
s.
Secretary Island and Bauza Island are some of the most important sanctuaries in New Zealand for critically endangered birds.
Hydroelectricity
Deep Cove (), the innermost end of Doubtful Sound, is the site of discharge of water from the Manapouri Power Station's tailrace tunnels. Deep Cove, like the rest of Fiordland, is a unique and mostly pristine environment. The discharge of clear fresh water has affected fauna and flora by letting light into the lower layers of the sound.
A Doubtful future
'' – ''New Zealand Listener
The ''New Zealand Listener'' is a weekly New Zealand magazine that covers the political, cultural and literary life of New Zealand by featuring a variety of topics, including current events, politics, social issues, health, technology, arts, f ...
'', 27 September 2008 Nevertheless, this is an area naturally high in fresh water inflows ( of rain falls annually).
The small wharf at Deep Cove is on rare occasion also used to unload any equipment for the Manapouri Power Station that is too large to be ferried across
Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri is located in the South Island of New Zealand. The lake is situated within the Fiordland National Park and the wider region of Te Wahipounamu South West New Zealand World Heritage Area.
Māori History
According to Māori people, ...
. From Deep Cove, such equipment then has to be hauled over Wilmot Pass to the power station.
Tourism
Unlike the more easily accessible Milford Sound, it is not possible to drive to Doubtful Sound, as the Wilmot Pass road is not connected to the road network and only connects the Manapouri Hydro Power Station with Deep Cove.
The only options for visitors to visit Doubtful Sound are boat cruises. The less common way to access Doubtful Sound is by sea. However, there are some boat cruises that operate out of the small town of Manapouri. These day trips first take a boat across Lake Manapouri and then a bus on the gravel road across Wilmot Pass to the Sound, where the Doubtful Sound tour boats berth at a small wharf in Deep Cove. The tour companies offer a day option out of Te Anau/Manapouri or an overnight option.
References
{{Authority control
Fiords of New Zealand
Sounds of Fiordland
Important Bird Areas of New Zealand