Egmont National Park - Definition and Overview

Satellite picture of Mount Taranaki from the NASA Earth Observatory showing the nearly-circular Egmont National park surrounding it.

Egmont National Park is located south of New Plymouth, close to the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand.

The park is dominated by the dormant volcano of Mount Taranaki. Since the area has a high rainfall rate and mild coastal climate there is a lush rainforest covering the foothills, changing to subalpine and alpine shrublands at high elevations, which are in stark contrast to the surrounding pasture farmlands.

Taranaki has been the Maori name for the mountain for many centuries. Captain Cook called it Mount Egmont, but is now officially named "Mount Taranaki or Mount Egmont".

External links

• NASA Earth Observatory page on Egmont National Park (1) (http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16333)
• NASA Earth Observatory page on Egmont National Park (2) (http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=9295)
• Department of Conservation information on Egmont National Park (http://www.doc.govt.nz/Explore/001~National-Parks/Egmont-National-Park/index.asp)