[7] In the Antarctic Southern Cross Expedition in 1898–1900, 92 huskies, Samoyeds and Greenland Esquimaux dogs were held in Native Island (with government reluctance) for temporary quarantine and examination.

[8][9][10][11] Due to quarantine regulations, most of the dogs were killed, but a few were kept under permission from MP Joseph Ward on the premise that they could be used for a future expedition.

[16] The following year, the whaler C. A. Larsen, a Norwegian factory ship, was towed and beached near Native Island after it went aground at Whero Rock.

[7] The ship's tanks leaked 2,000 tons of whale oil into the sea, causing long-term damage to the shell beds off Ringaringa Beach on Stewart Island.

[23] According to nature writer Sheila Natusch, sand-fixing plant life on the island includes coprosma, muehlenbeckia, golden sand sedge (pikao), and pink-flowered convolvulus.