Kapiti Island, sometimes written as Kāpiti Island, is an island nature reserve located 5.6 km (3 mi) off the west coast of the lower North Island of New Zealand and within the Kāpiti Coast District. Parts of the island were previously farmed, but it is now a predator-free sanctuary for endemic birds, including many endangered birds. The island is 10 km (6.2 mi) long, running southwest/northeast, and roughly 2 km (1.2 mi) wide, being more or less rectangular in shape, and has an area of 19.65 km2 (7.59 sq mi).
View of Kapiti Island from Pukerua Bay
View of Jillett's Whaling Station on Waiorua Beach in 1844. Drawn by Walter Armiger Bowring in 1907, based on an original sketch by John Alexander Gilfillan
Hunters on Kapiti Island in the 1890s
William, Prince of Wales holding a kiwi at a Department of Conservation event in 2010
The Kāpiti Coast District, is a local government district of the Wellington Region in the lower North Island of New Zealand, 50 km north of Wellington City. The district is named after Kapiti Island, a prominent island 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) offshore.
Looking across Waikanae Beach to Kapiti Island
Kapiti Island and the Kāpiti Coast from a hill in Tararua Forest Park. The town of Ōtaki is visible on the right.