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Portal:New Zealand

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New Zealand
Aotearoa (Māori)
A map of the hemisphere centred on New Zealand, using an orthographic projection.
Location of New Zealand, including outlying islands, its territorial claim in the Antarctic, and Tokelau
ISO 3166 codeNZ

New Zealand (Māori: Aotearoa) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui) and the South Island (Te Waipounamu)—and over 600 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area and lies east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. The country's varied topography and sharp mountain peaks, including the Southern Alps, owe much to tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, and its most populous city is Auckland.

A developed country, it was the first to introduce a minimum wage, and the first to give women the right to vote. It ranks very highly in international measures of quality of life, human rights, and it has one of the lowest levels of perceived corruption in the world. It retains visible levels of inequality, having structural disparities between its Māori and European populations. New Zealand underwent major economic changes during the 1980s, which transformed it from a protectionist to a liberalised free-trade economy. The service sector dominates the national economy, followed by the industrial sector, and agriculture; international tourism is also a significant source of revenue. New Zealand and Australia have a strong relationship and are considered to have a shared Trans-Tasman identity between the two countries, stemming from centuries of British colonisation. The country is part of multiple international organizations and forums. (Full article...)

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

Brigadier Miles, 1940–41

Brigadier Reginald Miles, CBE, DSO & Bar, MC (10 December 1892 – 20 October 1943) was a professional soldier who served in the New Zealand Military Forces during the First and Second World Wars.

Miles was a New Zealand entrant into the Australian Royal Military College, Duntroon, from which he graduated in 1914. He served as an artillery officer in the First World War and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his actions during the German spring offensive. He remained in the military after the war, holding artillery commands for the next several years. When the Second World War broke out, Miles was the Quartermaster General of the New Zealand Military Forces. In 1940, he was seconded to the 2nd New Zealand Division as its commander of artillery. He saw action during the Battle of Greece and later during Operation Crusader in North Africa. Captured during fighting near Tobruk in late 1941, he was held in a prisoner of war camp in Italy but escaped in April 1943 with five other officers, including fellow New Zealander James Hargest. By October, Miles had made his way to Spain where, overcome with depression, he committed suicide. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various New Zealand-related articles on Wikipedia.

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Housetruck under construction
Housetruck under construction

...that housetruckers in New Zealand live in old trucks and school buses (pictured) that have been converted into mobile homes?

... that the name of Whangaroa Harbour comes from the Māori lament "Whaingaroa" or "what a long wait" of a woman whose warrior husband had left for a foray to the south?

... that a feature of the New Zealand forest is the presence of many plants, like kauri, taraire, mangeao, Three Kings vine and pukanui, from genera that otherwise only occur in the tropics and subtropics?

...that researchers believe the monotypic New Zealand genus Oreostylidium represents an extreme example of floral paedomorphosis and should be transferred back to the related Australian genus Stylidium?

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The Kea (Nestor notabilis) is a species of parrot (family Nestoridae) found in forested and alpine regions of the South Island of New Zealand. The Kea is one of the few alpine parrots in the world, and includes carrion in an omnivorous diet consisting mainly of roots, leaves, berries, nectar and insects. Now uncommon, the Kea was once killed for bounty as it preyed on livestock, especially sheep. It only received full protection in 1986.

Kea are legendary for their intelligence and curiosity, both vital to their survival in a harsh mountain environment. Kea can solve logical puzzles, such as pushing and pulling things in a certain order to get to food, and will work together to achieve a certain objective.

Most people only encounter wild Kea at South Island ski areas. Kea are attracted by the prospect of food scraps. Often described as "cheeky", Keas' curiosity leads them to peck and carry away unguarded items of clothing, or to pry apart rubber parts of cars - to the entertainment and annoyance of human observers. In 2009, a Scottish tourist reported that a Kea stole his passport while he was visiting the Fiordland National Park. (Full article...)

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Christchurch Art Gallery facade
Christchurch Art Gallery facade

The Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, commonly known as the Christchurch Art Gallery, is the public art gallery of the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It has its own substantial art collection and also presents a programme of New Zealand and international exhibitions. It is funded by Christchurch City Council. The gallery opened on 10 May 2003, replacing the city's previous public art gallery, the Robert McDougall Art Gallery, which had opened in 1932. (Full article...)

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