Waipara River (Canterbury)
| Waipara River | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Canterbury |
| District | Hurunui |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mouth | |
• location | Pegasus Bay |
• coordinates | 43°09′06″S 172°47′59″E / 43.1516°S 172.7998°E |
| Length | 40 kilometres (25 mi) |
| Basin size | 726 square kilometres (280 sq mi) |
The Waipara River is a river in Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand.[1] The river is about 40 kilometres (25 mi) long, and its catchment area is 726 square kilometres (280 sq mi).[2]
The river passes through the small town of Waipara on its 45-kilometre (28 mi) southeastward journey to the Pacific Ocean at the northern end of Pegasus Bay near Amberley.
The Waipara River contains a number of historically and scientifically important sites, particularly in the upper reaches of the river where the sedimentary rocks contain significant information about the history of New Zealand. It is also where the first fossil bones to be discovered in New Zealand were found in 1859[3].
The most geologically rich areas are upstream of White Gorge, although at the Double Corner shellbeds between Wash Creek and Webbs Road several rock formations crop out, each with its own suite of fossils. These rock units form the cover sequence that was deposited on the older Torlesse basement after Zealandia (the New Zealand continent) broke away from Gondwana.
The presence of limestone indicates that the land once formed part of the seabed, as limestone is a calcareous rock formed when marine shellfish and other animals of calcite structure die. The limestone is rich in fossilised shells and skeletal debris from the plants and animals that lived in the ancient ocean. These include marine invertebrates such as molluscs, brachiopods, bryozoans and many others.
The New Zealand Geopreservation Inventory aims to list the best examples of a wide diversity of natural and physical features and processes that characterise each part of New Zealand and document their complex geological / geomorphological history. The Geopreservation Inventory includes five sites in the Waipara River[3].
It is one of the few places in the world where the K-Pg (formally the K-T) boundary, evidence of a comet that hit the Earth 65 million years ago and wiped out the dinosaurs, is visible. The river’s extraordinary fossil legacy includes huge marine reptiles inside giant ‘geological pearls’ known as concretions, as well as huge shells, the bones of ancient penguins, and teeth from enormous sharks.[4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Place name detail: Waipara River (Canterbury)". New Zealand Gazetteer. New Zealand Geographic Board. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
- ^ Introduction – Waipara Environment Canterbury Archived 2 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Waipara River Working Party (2012). "Waipara River Management Strategy". Hurunui District Council. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ "Waipara – BRaided Rivers New Zealand". Retrieved 6 January 2025.