Pitt Island

Air Chathams, Pitt Island.

The town of Pitt Island is 22 km south-east of Chatham Island. There is a total of about 30 persons and the island's principal industrial activity is agriculture and fisheries with a small but developing tourist bus. The nature reserves take up a large part of the island of Pitt and provide a living space for various species of birds and indigenous flora on an area of approx. 800ha.

Pitt people are very self-sufficient and rely on the city' s flight connections and the occasional dispatch plan for their general care. There is no shop on Pitt Island. The island is really remote and rough, with an astonishing history to tell.

More about Pitt Island | Flowerpot Bay Lodge

The Pitt Island is considered the gem in the Chatham Islands and is known for its stunning landscape and atmoshere. Most of the rest of the island is in private hands and is managed. There are seven farm operations on the island with approximately 12,000 floor unit operations. There are no government facilities or amenities on Pitt Island other than Flowerpot Bay Lodge, the churches and the schools.

Insularity on Pitt Island over the ages has meant that many plants, birds and insects have survive. Pitt, Mangere and Southeast Indies stay predator-free after 150 years of occupying Europe: proof of the work of the DOC. After Chatham Island and Pitt Island, the two biggest are named Mangere and Rangatira.

These are the last refuge of the Chatham endemics, free of all carnivores and parasites that have been brought in. The Pitt Island shepherds are also known as Spanish or Saxon merinos. They are offspring of Samuel Marsden, who brought them to New Zealand between 1814 and 1837 on his vessel "Active".

Together with John McArthur, Marsden was the initiator of the Australian woollen factory, and this year[1997] marked the bicentenary of this incident, because in 1797 in South Africa descendants of a small herd, which was handed over to the Dutch government by the King of Spain in 1789 and sent to South Africa, were taken to Australia by him.

Spanish merinos have been jealous of Spain for hundreds of years for its delicate wools and survive the revolutions of conflict and starvation. Since 1843, they have been living on Pitt Island in the Chatham Islands as shepherds. They are rich in genetics. They have clear, dark faces and long, very thin, dark fur.

Lambs can be found in the wilderness from April to November, and sometimes the young ram forms separated flocks of bachelors. Its flesh is thin and its delicate wools are ideal for weaving. Their crossbreeding can create a superfine fiber. Spanish merino is related to the fierce Arapawa and Hokonui lambs, as they also originate from the journeys of the brigantine'Active'.

Pitt Island did not see a sails for seven years after the end of whale hunting. During the 1940' s a dark-haired shepherd was a rare specimen. In 1960 half of the herd was blackened and in 1997 90% of the herd was blackened with dark fleece.