The Antipodes Islands (from Greek αντίποδες - antipodes) are inhospitable volcanic islands to the south of—and territorially part of—New Zealand. They lie 860 kilometres (534 mi) to the southeast of Stewart Island/Rakiura.
The island group consists of one main island, Antipodes Island, of 20 km2 (7.7 sq mi) area, Bollons Island of 2 km2 (0.77 sq mi) to the north, and numerous small islets and stacks, including Windward, Leeward and Archway Islands. The highest point is Mount Galloway (366 m/1,201 ft), which also forms part of the group's most recently active volcano.
Ecologically, the islands are part of the Antipodes Subantarctic Islands tundra ecoregion. The islands are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, together with other sub-Antarctic New Zealand islands. The island group is a nature reserve and there is no general public access.
Read more about Antipodes Islands: Etymology, Flora and Fauna, Conservation
Famous quotes containing the word islands:
“The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line—the relation of the darker to the lighter races of men in Asia and Africa, in America and the islands of the sea. It was a phase of this problem that caused the Civil War.”
—W.E.B. (William Edward Burghardt)