Informarion

ALDABRA ISLAND

	IOTA AF-025 Africans IOTA Islands Most Wanted rate – 7.9%
	Previous HAM activities: VQ9AA          May 1962 VQ9A/7        July 1962 VQ9/A/A     August 1970

Aldabra is a raised coral atoll in the Indian Ocean virtually untouched by humans, with distinctive island fauna, including the Aldabra Giant Tortoise. The atoll is home to the world's largest population of giant tortoises, numbering some 152,000 individuals. The islands are designated a World Heritage Site.

Geography

The atoll is located at 9°24′ S 46°22′ E and belongs to the Aldabra Group in the Outer Islands District of the Seychelles. The atoll is 265 miles northwest of the northern point of Madagascar and 690 miles southwest of Mahé, the principal island of the Seychelles archipelago. The Comoro Islands lie 220 miles southwest of Aldabra. The Aldabra Atoll, along with Des Roches and Farquhar, was part of the British Indian Ocean Territory from 1965 until Seychelles independence in 1976.

The atoll is the second largest in the world after Kiritimati. It is 34 km long, 14.5 km wide, up to 8 meters above sea level, and has a land area of 155.4 km². The lagoon measures 224 km² in area, of which roughly two thirds full dry during low tide.

The atoll consists of a ring of four larger islands (counterclockwise):

• South Island (Grand Terre, 116.1 km²)

• Middle Island (Malabar, 26.8 km²)

• Polymnie (4.75 km²)

• West Island (Picard, 9.4 km²)

Additionally, there are some forty smaller islands and rocks, mostly inside the lagoon: Ile aux Cendres, Ile Michel, Ile Esprit, Ile Moustiques, Ilot Parc, Ilot Emile, Ilot Yangue, Ilot Dubois, Ilot Magnan, Ile Lanier, Champignon des Os, Euphrate, Grand Mentor, Grand IIot, Gros IIot Gionnet, Gros IIot Sésame, Heron Rock, Hide Island, Ile aux Aigrettes, Ile aux Cèdres, Iles Chalands, Il Fangame, Ile Héron, Ile Michel, Ile Suacco, Ile Sylvestre, Ile Verte, Ilot Déder, Ilot du Sud, Ilot du Milieu, Ilot du Nord, Ilot Macoa, Ilot Marquoix, Ilots Niçois, Ilot Salade, Middle Row Island, Nobby Rock, North Row Island, Petit Mentor, Petit Mentor Endans, Petits IIots, Pink Rock, Table Ronde.

History

Aldabra was visited by Portuguese navigators in 1511. The islands were already known to the Arabs, from whom they get their name. In the middle of the 18th century, they became dependencies of the French colony of Réunion, from where expeditions were made for the capture of the giant tortoises. In 1810 with Mauritius, Réunion, the Seychelles and other islands, Aldabra passed into the possession of Great Britain. The previous inhabitants were emigrants from the Seychelles.

The abandoned settlement Picard on the southwestern tip of West Island is now home to the wildlife warden and his staff. There is no other permanent population. The islands are managed by the Seychelles Island Foundation.

Aldabra Group

The larger Aldabra Group consists of

• Aldabra Atoll

• Assumption Island

• Cosmoledo Atoll

• Astove Island

The total land area of the Aldabra Group is 175,91 km².

(Info from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldabra ,
more details are on - http://www.ms-starship.com/sciencenew/aldabra.htm )

FARQUHAR ISLAND

The Farquhar Atoll is part of the Farquhar Group of islands in the Seychelles that are part of the Outer Islands District. From 1965 to the independence of the Seychelles in 1976, they were a part of the British Indian Ocean Territory. The atoll is located at 10°10′ S 51°08′ E.

Farquhar is notable for its high sand dunes, some of which reach to over ten metres in height. The atoll is located about 770 km from Mahé and is the most southerly part of the Seychelles. It was discovered in 1501 by the Portuguese navigator, João da Nova.

The main group of islands form a long curve which describes the eastern side of the atoll. Largest of these are Ile du Nord and Ile du Sud, with the smaller Manaha islands between them. Further south is Goelettes. To the open western side of the atoll lies the small group known as Trois Îles. The atoll consists of:

- Ile du Nord
- Ile du Sud
- Manaha Nord
- Manaha Milieu
- Manaha Sud
- Goelettes
- Trois Iles
Lapin
Ile de Milieu
Depose
- Bancs de Sable