Duntroon, New Zealand

Duntroon
Town
A straight road, divided by painted lines, passing through a town. On the left, the street is lined with a pub and some widely separated shops. On the right, the road is lined by a grass verge with some small buildings in the middle distance. A black utility (car with a tray) is driving on the left away from the camera. A mountain range with a small covering of snow stands in the background.
Campbell St (State Highway 83), the main street
Map
Coordinates: 44°51′17″S 170°41′2″E / 44.85472°S 170.68389°E / -44.85472; 170.68389
CountryNew Zealand
RegionCanterbury
Territorial authorityWaitaki District
WardAhuriri Ward
CommunityAhuriri Community
Electorates
Government
 • Territorial authorityWaitaki District Council
 • Regional councilEnvironment Canterbury
 • Mayor of WaitakiGary Kircher
 • Waitaki MPMiles Anderson
 • Te Tai Tonga MPTākuta Ferris
Area
[1]
 • Total
5.13 km2 (1.98 sq mi)
Population
 (June 2024)[2]
 • Total
110
 • Density21/km2 (56/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+12 (New Zealand Standard Time)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+13 (New Zealand Daylight Time)
Postcode
9445
Local iwiNgāi Tahu

Duntroon (from Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Treòin) is a small farming-town in the Waitaki District of New Zealand's South Island. Although traditionally considered a North Otago town, it is located within the farthest southern reaches of Canterbury. Just north of the town runs the Waitaki River, which forms the traditional border between the two regions, although the official border has moved south to put most of Waitaki District, including Duntroon, within Canterbury. To the east of the village runs the Maerewhenua River. Near the village are the Earthquakes, a limestone-cliff formation.

St. Martin's Anglican Church

The town was named by Scottish settler and farmer Robert Campbell. Economic activity has been mainly agricultural for much of the town's history, focusing primarily on sheep farming and on the growing of crops such as wheat and barley.

Duntroon is home to the Vanished World Heritage Centre, dedicated to showcasing the geology of the Waitaki region and preserving fossils of extinct species that have been found in the region. These include two species of the penguin genus Archaeospheniscus, Lowe's penguin and Lopdell's penguin, found in the Kokoamu Greensand formation. The town is also located near two sites of centuries-old Māori rock drawings, one of which being the Takiroa Rock Art Shelter.

5 kilometres (3 mi) south of Duntroon, in the Maerewhenua Valley, a group of large rock-formations called "Elephant Rocks" was used as a filming location for the first Chronicles of Narnia movie in 2005.[3] The rock formations, located in a private field, are visible from the road.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Area was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  3. ^ "Filming at Elephant Rocks". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 March 2014.