Tasman River

The Tasman River is an alpine braided river flowing through Canterbury, in New Zealand's South Island.

Tasman River
Tasman River between Tasman Lake in the foreground, and Lake Pukaki in the distance
Route of the Tasman River
Mouth of the Tasman River Show map of New Zealand Tasman River (South Island) Show map of South Island
Location
Country	New Zealand
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Tasman Lake
• coordinates	43°42′23″S 170°10′18″E
• elevation	715 m (2,346 ft)[1]
Mouth
• location	Lake Pukaki
• coordinates	43°54′18″S 170°10′30″E
• elevation	518 to 532 m (1,699 to 1,745 ft)[2]
Length	25 km (16 mi)[3]
Basin features
Progression	Tasman River → Lake Pukaki → Pukaki River → Tekapo River → Lake Benmore → Lake Aviemore → Lake Waitaki → Waitaki River → Pacific Ocean
Tributaries
• left	Gorilla Stream, Oatmeal Creek, Chop Creek, Parsons Creek, Lily Stream, Bullrock Stream, Andrews Creek, Waits Creek, Joes Creek, McLeod Creek, Micks Creek, Jollie River, Coxs Creek
• right	Blue Stream, Hooker River, Black Birch Stream, Sawyer Stream, Birch Hill Stream, Elbow Stream, Freds Stream, Bush Stream, Slip Stream

The river's headwaters are in Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park, where it is the outflow of the proglacial Tasman Lake. It is also fed by the glacial waters of the tributary Murchison River, from Murchison Glacier, and the short Hooker River, an outflow of the proglacial lakes of the Hooker and Mueller glaciers.

The Tasman River flows south for 25 kilometres (16 mi) through the wide flat-bottomed Tasman Valley in the Southern Alps and into the northern end of the glacial Lake Pukaki, this forming part of the ultimate headwaters of the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme.

In 2019 a report was released giving the results of a pilot study on the invertebrate biodiversity present in the Tasman River flood plain.^[4]

See also

• List of rivers of New Zealand

References

1. "Tasman Lake, Canterbury – NZ Topo Map". NZ Topo Map. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
2. "Lake Pūkaki lake levels". Meridian Energy. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
3. "Tasman River, Canterbury – NZ Topo Map". NZ Topo Map. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
4. Murray, Tara J. (15 September 2019). "Invertebrates of the Tasman River Plain: Characteristics of the invertebrate community and an analysis of sampling methods for biodiversity assessment" (PDF). www.doc.govt.nz. Retrieved 1 January 2024.