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Abstract
The vegetation and soils of North Island, in the north-east group of muttonbird islands in Foveaux Strait, are described. The flora consists of 10 ferns, 6 monocotyledons, 35 dicotyledons, and 8 adventives (59 species). The main community types are coastal ledge and rock communities, cliff communities of herbaceous plants, coastal shrubland of Hebe elliptica, Olearia angustifolia, and Senecio reinoldii encircling the island and giving way to Myrsine chaihamica low forest on the plateau and with Myrsine australis low forest in the centre of the island. Scattered over the island are patches of Muehlenbeckia australis and Histiopteris incisa
The island is capped with a loess deposit some metres deep which appears to have been largely derived from Foveaux Strait during episodes of low sea level during the Pleistocene. The soils contain many seal gastroliths and have also been strongly influenced by the large colonies of petrels. Chemical analysis of one soil profile under Myrsine australis low forest showed very high carbon and nitrogen concentrations, extremely high Truog phosphate and total phosphorus concentration, high cation-exchange capacity values, and high exchangeable potassium and sodium values.
The island is slightly modified by the actions of muttonbirders but there are no introduced mammals or predators.