Loess in New Zealand: Observations by Haast, Hutton, Hardcastle, Wild and Speight, 1878–1948

Abstract

Early studies of loess in New Zealand were concentrated in the South Island, in particular in the province of Canterbury, on Banks Peninsula and at Timaru. Five important scholars can be identified and studied: J von Haast, F.W. Hutton, J. Hardcastle, L.J. Wild and R.Speight. They cover a period from first recording, in 1878, into the nineteen forties.They all recognised the importance of the Southern Alps in the production of loess material by mountain glaciers though Hutton and Wild took a somewhat controversial view that the final deposition was by some marine process.It can be argued though, that of the five, Hardcastle made the most significant contribution with the first observations of loess as a ‘climate register’ at Timaru in 1890 and was the first scholar to detail the role of glaciers in the production of loess material.The loess recorded the changes in climate for the Quaternary Era. Hardcastle, in effect, invented the science of palaeoclimatology; he should be recognised as a significant climatological pioneer.