Geography | |||||||||||||||||||
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Location | Caribbean | ||||||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 12°09′29″N68°18′39″W / 12.15806°N 68.31083°W | ||||||||||||||||||
Archipelago | Leeward Antilles, Lesser Antilles | ||||||||||||||||||
Administration | |||||||||||||||||||
Special municipality | Bonaire | ||||||||||||||||||
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Klein Bonaire (Dutch for "Little Bonaire") is a small uninhabited islet off the west coast of the Caribbean island of Bonaire, and is part of the Dutch special municipality of Bonaire.
The Klein Bonaire islet, which sits within the rough crescent formed by the main island, is 6 square kilometres (1,483 acres) and extremely flat, rising no more than two meters above the sea. The only structures on the island are some ruins of slave huts (small, single-room structures dating to the region's period of slavery), and a small open shelter on the beach facing Bonaire. The island has no running water or sanitation facilities.
In 1868, Klein Bonaire was sold to Angel Jeserun and remained in private hands until 1999. During this period the native trees were removed, resulting in a scrub growth across the island. The development of Klein Bonaire was attempted a few times prior to its establishment as a marine preserve, the last unsuccessful attempt being in 1995.
Concerned locals rallied to save Klein Bonaire and raise funds to do so and The Foundation for the Preservation of Klein Bonaire (FPKB) was born. Through efforts of the FPKB and other concerned parties, and with monies from the Department of the Interior and Kingdom Affairs of the Netherlands, the World Nature Fund of the Netherlands and FPKB, the island was successfully purchased in 1999 for 9 million Netherlands Antillean guilder (US$5 million).
Klein Bonaire is now part of the Bonaire National Marine Park. [2] Long-term plans include reintroduction of the native vegetation.
Klein Bonaire is permanently home to green ( Chelonia mydas ) and hawksbill sea turtles ( Eretmochelys imbricata ). During the nesting season it is also home to loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) and occasional flamingos. [3]
Montastraea annularis was the most common coral seen during a recent 2011 survey. [4]
Klein Bonaire has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports populations of threatened or restricted-range bird species, including bare-eyed pigeons, least terns and Caribbean elaenias. It is also a breeding site for Wilson's and snowy plovers. [5]
The distance from the shore of Bonaire to the shore of Klein Bonaire is about 800 metres (0.50 miles) at the nearest point. This span is frequently traversed by private and commercial boats and can be done by kayak with some difficulty. The primary attraction for visitors is scuba diving and snorkeling the pristine coral reef surrounding the islet. Numbered yellow painted rocks near the open shelter show where divers can cross low points on the reef, which is very close to the beach. When facing the water at the rocks the current runs from right to left.
Bonaire is a Caribbean island in the Leeward Antilles, and is a special municipality of the Netherlands. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west (leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC islands, 80 km off the coast of Venezuela. The islands have an arid climate that attracts visitors seeking warm, sunny weather all year round, and they lie outside the Main Development Region for tropical cyclones. Bonaire is a popular snorkeling and scuba diving destination because of its multiple shore diving sites, shipwrecks and easy access to the island's fringing reefs.
An islet is generally a small island. Definitions vary, and are not precise, but some suggest that an islet is a very small, often unnamed, island with little or no vegetation to support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanent or tidal ; and may exist in the sea, lakes, rivers or any other sizeable bodies of water.
Little Cayman is one of three Islands that make up the Cayman Islands. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, approximately 60 miles (96 km) northeast of East End, Grand Cayman and five miles (8 km) west of West End, Cayman Brac. Little Cayman is the least populous island of the three, with a permanent population of about 160 (2021) including seasonal residents/homeowners. The majority of the population are expatriate workers from Jamaica, the Philippines, and Honduras and from other Latin American countries as well as Canada, the USA, India, Australia, Scotland, England, and South Africa. There are a handful of local Caymanians estimated as fewer than 20. It is about 10 miles (16 km) long with an average width of 1 mile (1600 m) and most of the island is undeveloped. Almost the entire island is at sea level. The highest elevation is about 40 feet. The rainy season, which consists of mostly light showers, occurs in Mid-April until June and again in mid-September to mid-October. There will be occasional quick rain showers in the early morning hours. The coolest months are from End of November until Mid March as the cold fronts coming in from the North which the temperature can drop into the low'70s. The Hottest and dryest months are in Summer starting mid-June to mid-September with temperatures between the mid-80s and high 90s. There are no large or predatory or venomous animals that pose a threat to humans.
Egg Island is an uninhabited island, officially an islet, comprising 800 m2 (8,611 sq ft) in the Bahamas. It is thought to be named because of the supposed chickens owned by residents of other nearby islands who travel here to collect the eggs; however, there are no chickens on Egg Island. Another theory is that local sea bird eggs were often collected here by the first settlers, these were then wiped out by the introduction of goats to the island a long time ago.
Klein Curaçao is a 1.7-square-kilometre uninhabited island belonging to, and lying 10 km south-east of, Curaçao, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Dutch Caribbean.
The Federal Dependencies of Venezuela encompass most of Venezuela's offshore islands in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Venezuela, excluding those islands that form the State of Nueva Esparta and some Caribbean coastal islands that are integrated with nearby states. These islands, with a total area of 342 square kilometres, are sparsely populated – according to the preliminary results of the 2011 Census only 2,155 people live there permanently, with another hundred from Margarita Island who live there seasonally to engage in fishing. Local government is officially under the authority of Central government in Caracas, although de facto power is often held by the heads of the sparse and somewhat isolated communities that decorate the territories.
The Dollabarat Reef is a shoal situated 5 km south-southeast of the Formigas Islets on the Formigas Bank in the Azores archipelago.
The Tubbataha Natural Park, also known as the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, is a protected area of the Philippines located in the middle of the Sulu Sea. The marine and bird sanctuary consists of two huge atolls and the smaller Jessie Beazley Reef covering a total area of 97,030 hectares. It is located 150 kilometres (93 mi) southeast of Puerto Princesa, the capital of Palawan. The uninhabited islands and reefs are part of the island municipality of Cagayancillo, located roughly 130 kilometers (81 mi) to the northeast of the reef.
The Los Roques Archipelago is a federal dependency of Venezuela consisting of approximately 350 islands, cays, and islets in a total area of 40.61 square kilometers. The archipelago is located 128 kilometers (80 mi) directly north of the port of La Guaira, in the Caribbean Sea.
The Tobago Cays are an archipelago located in the Southern Grenadines of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines comprising five small islands and extensive coral reefs. The cays – Petit Rameau, Petit Bateau, Baradal, Petit Tabac and Jamesby – are a popular tourism destination.
The National Marine Park of Zakynthos founded in 1999, is a national park located in Laganas bay, in Zakynthos island, Greece. The park, part of the Natura 2000 ecological network, covers an area of 135 square kilometres (52 sq mi) and is the habitat of the loggerhead sea turtle. It is the first national park established for the protection of sea turtles in the Mediterranean.
The Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park is off the coast of the island of Cozumel in the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico. The Cozumel reef system is part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, the second largest coral reef system in the world. Even though almost the entire island of Cozumel is surrounded by coral reefs, the park only encompasses the reefs on the south side of the island. It begins just south of the International Pier and continues down and around Punta Sur and up just a small portion of the east side of the island. The park contains both shallow and mesophotic coral reefs and extends to the 100 m depth isobar.
The Coral Sea Reserves Ramsar Site comprises the 17,289 km2 of oceanic island and reef habitats within the former Coringa-Herald National Nature Reserve and the former Lihou Reef National Nature Reserve in the Australian Coral Sea Islands Territory.
The Prickly Pear Cays, sometimes spelt as Prickley Pear Cays, are a small pair of uninhabited islands about six miles from Road Bay, Anguilla, in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean. They are divided by a narrow boat channel between Prickly Pear East and Prickly Pear West. Prickly Pear Cays were classified as 'wildlands' by the "Eastern Caribbean Natural Area Management Programme" (ECNAMP). In addition, Prickly Pear Cays are one of six marine protected areas of Anguilla.
Washington Slagbaai National Park is a national park and ecological reserve on the northwestern part of the island of Bonaire in the Caribbean Netherlands. The 5,643 hectares (21.79 sq mi) park covering approximately a fifth of the island of Bonaire is managed by STINAPA Bonaire, a non-profit foundation, on behalf of the Bonaire government. Established in 1969, Washington Slagbaai National Park was the first nature reserve to be established in the former Netherlands Antilles.
Cape Byron Marine Park is one of four marine parks in New South Wales, Australia, and is the most recently sanctioned. The Cape Byron Marine Park is located in Northern NSW and extends 37 kilometres (23 mi) from the Brunswick River to Lennox Head. The marine park extends out to 3 nautical miles which dictates the border between state and federal jurisdiction. The marine park covers an area of 220 square kilometres (85 sq mi) and includes a variety of marine terrain including beaches, rocky shores, open ocean and the tidal waters of the Brunswick River and its tributaries, the Belongil Creek and Tallow Creek. The Cape Byron Marine Park was declared in 2002 and the zoning plan was implemented in April 2006. Of the 15 distinct marine ecosystems identified within the Tweed-Moreton bioregion, the Cape Byron Marine Park supports 10 of these.
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The East African coral coast is a marine ecoregion along the eastern coast of Africa. It extends along the coasts of Kenya, Tanzania, and northern Mozambique, from Lamu in Kenya to Angoche in Mozambique. It adjoins the Northern Monsoon Current Coast ecoregion to the north, and the Bight of Sofala/Swamp Coast ecoregion to the south.
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