Cosmoledo
Encyclopedia
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
of the Aldabra Group
Aldabra Group
The Aldabra Group are part of the Outer Islands of the Seychelles, lying in the southwest of the island nation, 1000 kilometres from the capital, Victoria, on Mahé Island.The total land area of the Aldabra Group is 175.91 km²....
and belongs to the Outer Islands
Outer Islands (Seychelles)
The Outer Islands or Coralline Seychelles is a collective term for those islands of the Seychelles that are not on the shallow Seychelles Bank which defines the location of the Inner Islands. They are located at distances of 230 to 1150 km from the main Seychelles island of Mahé, and are all...
of the Seychelles
Seychelles
Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
. The atoll is 14.5 km long east-west, and 11.5 km north-south. The total land area is about 5.2 km², while the lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
measures 145 km² in area (total 152 km²). It is located at 9°42′S 47°36′E. The closest island is Astove Island
Astove Island
Astove Island is part of the Aldabra Group of the Seychelles. It is 38 km SSE of Cosmoledo Atoll, located at . It is a raised coral island of most peculiar form: a single stretch of land, more than 1 km at the widest, almost entirely encloses a shallow lagoon...
, 38 km farther south. Cosmoledo Atoll and Astove Island are together sometimes known as Cosmoledo Group, which is part of the larger Aldabra Group
Aldabra Group
The Aldabra Group are part of the Outer Islands of the Seychelles, lying in the southwest of the island nation, 1000 kilometres from the capital, Victoria, on Mahé Island.The total land area of the Aldabra Group is 175.91 km²....
.
Islands
There are 16 individual islets and cayCay
A cay , also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island formed on the surface of coral reefs. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans , where they provide habitable and agricultural land for hundreds of thousands of people...
s along the rim of the atoll, with Menai (in the west) and Wizard Island (Grande Île, in the southeast) being the largest. The islands, islets and cays are listet clockwise
Clockwise
Circular motion can occur in two possible directions. A clockwise motion is one that proceeds in the same direction as a clock's hands: from the top to the right, then down and then to the left, and back to the top...
, starting with the northernmost island:
East
- Île du Trou
- Goelette Island
- Grand Polyte Island
- Petit Polyte Island
- Wizard Island (Île Grande) (with fishermen's huts) 1.6 km²
West
- Île Moustique
- île Baleine
- Menai Island (with the former main settlement, now abandoned) 2.3 km²
- Île Chauve Souris
- Île Manaque
- Observation Islet
- Middle Islet
Fauna
Cosmoledo holds Seychelles' largest colonies of all three species of boobyBooby
A booby is a seabird in the genus Sula, part of the Sulidae family. Boobies are closely related to the gannets , which were formerly included in Sula.-Description:...
that breed in Seychelles. The atoll holds the last viable population of Brown Booby
Brown Booby
The Brown Booby is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. The adult brown booby reaches about in length. Its head and upper body are covered in dark brown, with the remainder being a contrasting white. The juvenile form is gray-brown with darkening on the head, wings and tail...
, breeding mainly on Ile du Sud Ouest, with a few on Ile du Nord. It also has the Indian Ocean's larget population of Red-footed Booby
Red-footed Booby
The Red-footed Booby, Sula sula, is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. As suggested by the name, adults always have red feet, but the colour of the plumage varies. They are powerful and agile fliers, but they are clumsy in takeoffs and landings...
censused by the Island Conservation Society
Island Conservation Society
Island Conservation Society was registered as an NGO in Seychelles in April 2001. The articles state the goal and mission of the organisation as follows:...
as about 15,000 pairs. Exploitation has wiped out the Lesser Frigatebird
Lesser Frigatebird
The Lesser Frigatebird, Fregata ariel, is a species of frigatebird.It nests in Australia, among other locations.There is a single record from the Western Palearctic, from Eilat in the Gulf of Aqaba....
and has almost done the same to the Great Frigatebird
Great Frigatebird
The Great Frigatebird is a large dispersive seabird in the frigatebird family. Major nesting populations are found in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, as well as a population in the South Atlantic....
, which is down to just 10-20 pairs compared to hundreds of pairs in the 1970s. Despite this, hundreds of non-breeding frigatebirds of both species are to be seen, these being probably from Aldabra
Aldabra
Aldabra, the world's second largest coral atoll, is in the Aldabra Group of islands in the Indian Ocean that form part of the Seychelles. Uninhabited and extremely isolated, Aldabra is virtually untouched by humans, has distinctive island fauna including the Aldabra Giant Tortoise, and is...
. The Lesser Frigatebird also once bred but now may be extinct. Cosmoledo also has Seychelles' largest colony of Sooty Tern
Sooty Tern
The Sooty Tern, Onychoprion fuscatus , is a seabird of the tern family . It is a bird of the tropical oceans, breeding on islands throughout the equatorial zone. Colloquially, it is known as the Wideawake Tern or just wideawake...
breeding on the northern end of Grand Ile (Wizard). Second only to Aldabra are the numbers of breeding Red-tailed Tropicbird
Red-tailed Tropicbird
The Red-tailed Tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda, is a seabird that nests across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the rarest of the tropicbirds, yet is still a widespread bird that is not considered threatened. It nests in colonies on oceanic islands....
, Black-naped Tern
Black-naped Tern
The Black-naped Tern is an oceanic tern mostly found in tropical and subtropical areas of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It is rarely found inland....
and Crested Tern.
The lagoon is an important feeding ground for migratory waders, with Crab Plover
Crab Plover
The Crab-plover or Crab Plover is a bird related to the waders, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family Dromadidae. Its relationship within the Charadriiformes is unclear, some have considered it to be closely related to the thick-knees, or the pratincoles, while others have...
and Ruddy Turnstone
Ruddy Turnstone
The Ruddy Turnstone is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae...
most common. There are three endemic races of land bird: the Madagascar White-eye (race menaiensi), the Souimanga Sunbird (race buchenorum) and a particular form of Madagascar Turtle Dove. The Madagascar Cisticola is also common and there are a few Pied Crow present. The most interesting islands are Grande Ile, Ile Sud Ouest, Ile du Nord, Ile du Nord Est and Ile du Trou.
The Island Conservation Society
Island Conservation Society
Island Conservation Society was registered as an NGO in Seychelles in April 2001. The articles state the goal and mission of the organisation as follows:...
is carrying out conservation and rehabilitation work on the atoll, including the eradication of introduced rats and cats.