Off the Mangawhai Heads are The Hen and Chicken Island Group, a mecca for Scuba Divers. This is because the area provides excellent accessibility, interesting diving terrain and fascinating sub-tropical and temperate water sealife.
Taranga (Hen) Island is the remains of a four million year old volcano, and has been separate from the mainland for 10,0000 years or more.
Taranga is a Department of Conservation Nature Reserve so landing is not allowed here, and for good reason, the Island is fully forested and plays host to species of native plants including four threatened, 12 'At Risk' and 25 regionally significant plants. All the introduced predators (cats, stoats etc) that populate the mainland have been progressively exterminated from Taranga, with the island declared pest free in 2011. Lizards including Tuatara, Geckos and skinks as well as rare native snails thrive in this environment. Birdlife on the island includes the little spotted kiwi, rare saddleback, native parakeet and even the kaka bird. As well as the Department of Conservation's interest in the island, it is also of spiritual significance to the Ngati Wai people, who lived here in pre-European days, some evidence of their settlements still being in place. Just to the south of Taranga is Sail Rock, which is used by boaties as a navigation point.
The other islands are known as Muriwhenua, Whareware, Lady Alice (was a farm), Whatupuke, Coppermine (wasn't able to turn a profit), Mauitaha and Arara. Each has a different seascape for divers to explore.
The offbeat name of the island group was actually bestowed upon them by James Cook in 1769, it is said he thought they resembled the star cluster sometimes known in those times as Hen and Chicken, more commonly known as Pleiades, and called Matariki by Maori.
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