Biak

The title of this article is ambiguous. Further meanings are listed under Biak (disambiguation) .

Biak
Biak and the other Schouten Islands in Indonesia
Waters	Pacific Ocean
Archipelago	Schouten Islands
Geographical location	0 ° 59 ′  S , 135 ° 57 ′  E Coordinates: 0 ° 59 ′  S , 135 ° 57 ′  E
length	60 km
width	30 km
surface	1 746  km²
Highest elevation	700  m
main place	Kota Biak
Fishing boats on Biak

Biak is an island in the East Indonesian Cenderawasih Bay in the Pacific Ocean . At 1,746 km², Biak is the largest island in the Schouten archipelago and belongs to the Indonesian province of Papua .

geography

Biak is bounded to the north by the Pacific Ocean and to the south by the Strait of Yapen . In the west, Biak separates the Teluk Surendidori strait, which is only a few meters wide, from the island of Supiori . The island has a north-south extension of about 60 kilometers and an east-west extension of about 30 kilometers on average. In contrast to the neighboring island of Yapen to the south , Biak is relatively flat, the highest point being around 700 meters above sea level. The island is surrounded by species-rich coral reefs off Biak and the Padaio Islands . On the south coast of the island is Kota Biak , the main town of Biak.

climate

Since the island is only a few kilometers south of the equator, there is a warm tropical climate with high humidity all year round. The temperatures are almost constant throughout the year due to the steep angle of incidence of the sun, which is the same all year round, and the climate is characterized by high rainfall all year round.

Average monthly temperatures and rainfall for Biak Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Max. Temperature ( ° C ) 30.0 29.2 31.0 30.2 30.1 29.7 31.0 29.7 29.7 30.3 30.3 30.4 O 30.1 Min. Temperature (° C) 23.4 23.7 23.4 23.2 23.5 23.2 23.5 22.9 22.3 23.6 23.8 23.7 O 23.3 Precipitation ( mm ) 270 246 278 214 266 216 234 243 209 206 195 239 Σ 2,816 Hours of sunshine ( h / d ) 3.3 3.0 2.7 3.4 3.8 3.6 3.6 3.9 4.0 3.8 3.2 3.1 O 3.5 Rainy days ( d ) 25th 22nd 20th 18th 21st 16 14th 19th 20th 17th 12 15th Σ 219 Humidity ( % ) 85 85 85 86 86 85 85 84 84 83 84 85 O 84.7 Source: WMO ; wetterkontor.de

Flora and fauna

Due to the high rainfall and the favorable temperatures, the island is overgrown with lush tropical rainforest and is home to a variety of different animal and plant species. Due to the isolated location of Biak since the early days (the island was probably not connected to the larger island of New Guinea ) a number of endemic animal species have developed here, including a. the Biakliest and the Beccari scops owl . The wildlife is in some ways comparable to that of Australia. Ornithologists observe numerous species of cockatoo and parrot. Crown pigeons and birds of paradise.

Sports

The island-based football club PSBS Biak currently plays in Indonesia's second-highest division, Liga 2 .

Others

The island was the site of the Battle of Biak in 1944 . After the Second World War, a large number of surplus aircraft were flown from the Pacific region to Biak and finally scrapped there by the beginning of 1950.