D'Urville Island

D’Urville Island (Te Aumiti / D’Urville Island) is the largest island in the Marlborough Sounds of New Zealand, situated off the northern coast of the South Island. The island is named after French explorer Jules Dumont d’Urville.

The terrain is rugged and hilly, covered largely in native forest with a deeply indented coastline of bays and inlets and limited road access. Human settlement is sparse; the island is reached by boat or small local ferry from the nearby mainland.

Historically the island has been used for small-scale farming, fishing and as a maritime waypoint; today it attracts visitors for boating, fishing, walking and wildlife observation rather than large-scale tourism.

Geographically it lies across the Cook Strait entrance to the Marlborough Sounds, separated from the South Island by narrow channels including the French Pass.

• Location and status: The island is the largest in the Marlborough Sounds and lies off the northern tip of New Zealand's South Island, separated from the mainland by the narrow French Pass.
• Landscape and settlement: Remote and sparsely populated with rugged, forested hills and an indented coastline of bays and inlets rather than beaches or large settlements.