Rakiura National Park is located on Stewart Island. It is the 14th of New Zealand's national parks, and was officially opened on March 9, 2002. It covers 163 km², which is about eighty-five percent of Stewart Island.
It is made up of a network of former nature reserves, scenic reserves, and State Forest areas. The popular Rakiura Track is within the national park.
The local community on the island is very small -– only about 400 residents living in Oban on Half Moon Bay.
Many native birds can be found within in the park, and Rakiura offers perhaps the best opportunity anywhere in New Zealand for viewing kiwi in the wild. This in part due to a lack of stoats and ferrets.
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