Wairauite is a rare cobalt-iron alloy found primarily in serpentinized ultramafic rocks. It typically occurs as small metallic grains and is often identified through micro-analysis due to its visual similarity to other native iron-nickel minerals.
Is this wairauite?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch wairauite with a known reference. Wairauite sits at Mohs 4.5, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: black.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: metallic.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: steel gray.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: cubic. Typical habit: euhedral crystals.
Often confused with
Wairauite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Wairauite leaves black, Kamacite leaves gray.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Wairauite leaves black, Taenite leaves light gray.
How to tell apart: Awaruite is the harder of the two (Mohs 5.5-6 vs. 4.5); streak differs, so Wairauite leaves black, Awaruite leaves light gray.
Often found alongside wairauite
Minerals reported to co-occur with wairauite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- CoFe
- Mohs hardness
- 4.5
- Density
- 8.32 g/cm³
- Colors
- Streak
- Black
- Luster
- Metallic
- Transparency
- Opaque
- Crystal system
- Cubic
- Crystal habit
- Euhedral crystals
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- In a dominantly lizardite serpentine at the western contact of an ultramafic intrusion; thought to have formed under low-sulfur reducing conditions during the serpentinization process (Wairau Valley, New Zealand)
Where rockhounds find wairauite
Classic worldwide localities
- Red Hills, Wairau Valley, Marlborough district, South Island, New Zealand
- Muskox intrusion, Northwest Territories, Canada
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: In a dominantly lizardite serpentine at the western contact of an ultramafic intrusion; thought to have formed under low-sulfur reducing conditions during the serpentinization process (Wairau Valley, New Zealand). If you start seeing chromite, magnetite, awaruite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: euhedral crystals. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
How do you identify wairauite?+
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Is wairauite safe to handle?+
What rocks look like wairauite?+
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Find wairauite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
