Location Pacific Ocean Length 5.8 km (3.6 mi) Overseas collectivity French Polynesia Area 11 km² | Archipelago Tuamotus Width 3.5 km (2.17 mi) Administrative subdivision Tuamotus Island group Tuamotus | |
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Morane is an uninhabited small isolated atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located 153 km southwest of Maria Est, its closest neighbour. Morane Atoll is the southernmost atoll of the Tuamotus proper. It measures 5.8 km in length, 3.5 km in width and has a land area of 2 km2. The lagoon has an area of 11 km2 and has no passes. The islands on its reef are covered with screw pine (Pandanus) and coconut trees.
Contents
Map of Morane
History
The first recorded westerner to sight Morane Atoll was US whaler Nathaniel Cary in 1832. He named it "Barstow's Island" after his ship Gideon Barstow. In some maps it appears as "Cadmus".
Administration
Administratively Morane Atoll belongs to the commune of the Gambier Islands.
Ecology
By 2003, Morane Atoll holds one of the largest extant populations (approx. 50 individuals) of the critically endangered Polynesian ground-dove. It also has one of the highest concentrations of the Tuamotu sandpiper (Prosobonia cancellata), with approximately 150 to 200 individuals of the species.