Shakespear Regional Park is a nature park in the

Auckland Region Auckland () is one of the sixteen regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland Metropolitan Area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Containing ...

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 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It is located at the tip of the

Whangaparaoa Peninsula The Whangaparaoa Peninsula is a suburban area about 25 km north of Auckland, New Zealand. It had 30,672 residents in 2013, many of them in the eponymous town of Whangaparaoa on its southern side. It is part of the Hibiscus Coast. ...

, and is named after the Shakespear family which bought the land in the 1880s from local Maori.Shakespear

Auckland Regional Council The Auckland Regional Council (ARC) was the regional council (one of the former local government authorities) of the Auckland Region. Its predecessor the Auckland Regional Authority (ARA) was formed in 1963 and became the ARC in 1989. The AR ...

The park includes the Tamaki Leadership Centre, a

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

base.

Geography

Tui in the harakeke (flax) at Shakespear Regional Park

Much of the coastline is lined by sandstone cliffs, which shelter the beach-lined Te Haruhi Bay. At the Park's western border, a narrow lowland separates Okoromai Bay and Army Bay. Most of the regional park is the Shakespear Open Sanctuary, a collaboration between the Shakespear Open Sanctuary Society and local authorities.

Kiwi Kiwi most commonly refers to: * Kiwi (bird), a flightless bird native to New Zealand * Kiwi (nickname), a nickname for New Zealanders * Kiwifruit, an edible berry * Kiwi dollar or New Zealand dollar, a unit of currency Kiwi or KIWI may also refe ...

birds have been spotted in the sanctuary. A pest/predator-proof fence across the peninsula, completed in March 2011, protects the park's wildlife. This includes resident invertebrates and lizards, along with birds migrating from the nearby

Tiritiri Matangi Tiritiri Matangi Island is located in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand, east of the Whangaparaoa Peninsula in the North Island and north east of Auckland. The island is an open nature reserve managed by the Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi Incorp ...

island sanctuary.

Brodifacoum Brodifacoum is a highly lethal 4-hydroxycoumarin vitamin K antagonist anticoagulant poison. In recent years, it has become one of the world's most widely used pesticides. It is typically used as a rodenticide, but is also used to control larger p ...

poison airdrops were conducted in July 2011 to eradicate mammalian pests.

History

The

Kawerau Kawerau is a town in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated 100 km south-east of Tauranga and 58 km east of Rotorua. It is the seat of the Kawerau District Council, and the only town in Kawerau Distric ...

hapū In Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief and normally opera ...

Ngāti Kahu traditionally inhabited the area, prior to the arrival of Europeans. Ngāti Kahu's major focuses of settlement were around Te Haruhi Bay and

Army Bay Army Bay is a northern coastal suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is on the Whangaparaoa Peninsula about 47 kilometres (by road) north of the city centre. It is named for the New Zealand Defence Force area north of Shakespear Regional Park. The ...

. Whangaparaoa Peninsula was purchased by the government in 1853, after which settlers began developing the land for grazing. Ngāti Kahu continued to live on the land until the 1890s. The Shakespear family acquired many of the landholdings, and farmed the area for much of the 20th century. The northern area of the park was acquired by the

New Zealand Army , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1967 the Shakespear family sold their land to the

, who established the Shakespear Regional Park.

Recreation

There are three main walkways in the park: Heritage Trail, Lookout Track and Tiri Tiri Track.

References

{{Protected areas of New Zealand Hibiscus and Bays Local Board Area Parks in the Auckland Region Regional parks of New Zealand Tourist attractions in the Auckland Region Wildlife sanctuaries of New Zealand Hauraki Gulf Hibiscus Coast