1954 Chatham Islands expedition
1954 Chatham Islands expedition | |
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| Start | Lyttelton  22 January 1954 |
| End | Lyttelton 12 February 1954 |
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The 1954 Chatham Islands expedition was a research expedition organised by George Knox of the University of Canterbury to explore the distribution of benthic and pelagic marine fauna living between the Chatham Islands / Rēkohu and the eastern coast of New Zealand.
Origin
[edit]The idea for the expedition came from George Knox.[1] Funding was received from the New Zealand Oceanographic Committee, via the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR).[2][3]
Expedition
[edit]The expedition took place in January and February 1954.[3][4][5] The vessel used to undertake this expedition was the MV Alert.[3] The Alert, which had been used for other scientific expeditions,[6] was specially fitted out for this expedition with dredging and trawling equipment, a winch and specially designed sorting benches.[7]
On its way to the Chathams the expedition did oceanographic work on the Mernoo Bank on the Chatham Rise, the area of sea bed between Banks Peninsula and the Chatham Islands.[2] They visited a number of locations on Rekohu (the main island) including Owenga, Kaingaroa, Waitangi, Petre Bay, Te Whanga Lagoon and Port Hutt.[3] Scientists also landed on the smaller islands of South East (Rangatira) Island, Pitt Island, The Sisters and the Forty-Fours.[1][3]
Members
[edit]- John Yaldwyn, crustacea[3]
- Richard Dell, molluscs[3]
- George Alexander Knox, polychaetes[3]
- David McNiven Garner, hydrology[3]
- Ray Forster, terrestrial invertebrates[3]
- Betty Batham, marine biology[3][8]
- Daphne Marshall, photographer[3]
- John Munne Moreland, marine ichthyologist[3][8]
- John McIntyre, marine biology[2][3]
- Elliot Watson Dawson, oceanography and birds[3][8]
- A.J. Black, ship's master[2][3]
Members of the expedition came from several different institutions: University of Canterbury, Canterbury Museum, Dominion Museum, Victoria University, the DSIR, Portobello Marine Laboratory and the University of Otago Medical School.[1][2][3]
Results
[edit]The expedition collected thousands of specimens of both land and marine fauna including over 150 new species.[1][3][6] Over 1200 specimens from the expedition are held by Te Papa.[5] Photographs taken by Dawson are held in the Alexander Turnbull Library.[8]
Dell named a deep water snail after the expedition ship and its master Alertalex blacki while another snail was named Chathamidia expeditionis after the expedition.[6]
Bibliography
[edit]The following publications resulted from the expedition:
- Yaldwyn, John (1954). "Nephrops challengeri Balss, 1914, (Crustacea, Decapoda, Reptantia) from New Zealand and Chatham Island Waters". Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 82: 721 – via Papers Past.
- Knox, G. A. (1954). "The Intertidal Flora and Fauna of the Chatham Islands". Nature. 174 (4436): 871–873. doi:10.1038/174871a0. ISSN 0028-0836.
- Dawson, E.W. (1955). "Birds of the Chatham Islands". Notornis. 6 (3): 78–82.
- Brewin, Beryl I. (1956). "Ascidians from the Chatham Islands and the Chatham Rise". Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 84, 1956-57, Page 121. 84: 121 – via Papers Past.
- Knox, G. A. (1957). General account of the Chatham Islands 1954 expedition by G.A. Knox. New Zealand. Department of Scientific Industrial Research.[3]
- Pike, R. B. (1961). A new bopyrid parasite collected by the Chatham Islands 1954 expedition. New Zealand. Marine Department.
- Biological results of the Chatham Islands 1954 expedition. (1960-1972). Wellington: New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. Parts 1-7.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Discoveries at Chathams". Press. 13 February 1954. p. 6. Retrieved 28 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b c d e "Expedition to Chathams". Press. 22 January 1954. p. 6. Retrieved 31 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s G A Knox (1957). "General account of the Chatham Islands 1954 Expedition" (PDF). New Zealand Oceanographic Institute Memoir. 2: 1–37. ISSN 0083-7903. Wikidata Q66412141.
- ^ G H Uttley; J S Bullivant (1971). "Biological results of the Chatham Islands 1954 Expedition. Part 7. Bryozoa Cheilostomata" (PDF). New Zealand Oceanographic Institute Memoir. 57: 1–59. ISSN 0083-7903. Wikidata Q66412054.
- ^ a b "Chatham Islands Expedition (1954)". collections.tepapa.govt.nz. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ a b c "Dick Dell and the fantastic frilled crab". Te Papa’s Blog. 3 July 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
- ^ "Expedition to Chathams". Press. 24 March 1954. p. 10. Retrieved 31 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b c d "Scientific expedition to the Chatham Islands". tiaki.natlib.govt.nz. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
External links
[edit]- Biological Results of The Chatham Islands 1954 Expedition, ourheritage.ac.nz – Photo of the M.V. Alert at the Seven Sisters
- Three men carrying a crate onto the wharf at Lyttleton Port. Scientific expedition to Chatham Islands, 1954. Te Ūaka, the Lyttleton Museum