Motukawanui, the largest of the Cavalli Islands, off Matauri Bay, is one of 107 islands around the world that have been identified by a major international collaboration of scientists, researchers and conservationists as offering the best chance to save some of the world's most threatened species.
Four other New Zealand islands — the sub-antarctic Auckland, Slipper (Coromandel), Kawau and Great Barrier islands (Hauraki Gulf) are also on the list.
Forty institutions, including universities and major conservation organisations such as Birdlife International and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), contributed to the assessment of islands, the list appearing last week in the journal PLOS One.
"We already know islands are a vital conservation opportunity, but this study gives us the bigger picture, a list of locations where the most progress could be made," said Associate Professor James Russell, from the University of Auckland, who contributed to the research.
"One of the study's most important aspects is that it not only assesses the feasibility of eradicating predators on these islands, but assesses how feasible this work would be from a political and socio-economic point of view."