Cagarras Islands

Cagarras Islands
View of Ipanema from Corcovado . Parts of the Cagarras Islands and other islands (in the background) are visible.
Waters	Atlantic Ocean
Geographical location	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W Coordinates: 23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Number of islands	7th
Main island	Ilha Cagarra
Residents	uninhabited
Cagarras Islands seen from Dois Irmãos

The Cagarras Islands ( Ilhas Cagarras in Portuguese ) are a small archipelago of seven uninhabited islands and a few rocks off the south coast of the Brazilian city ​​of Rio de Janeiro .

The islands are located in Guanabara Bay . The main island is Ilha Cagarra , which, like Ilha Comprida and Ilha de Palmas, is one of the largest islands in the group.

Islands

The Cagarras Islands include the following islands:

 Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap

Island name	Area ( hectare ), approx.	Geographic coordinates
Ilha Cagarra	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Ilhota Cagarra	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Laje da Cagarra	0.43	23 ° 1 ′  S , 43 ° 11 ′  W
Ilhota Pequena	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Ilhota Grande	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Ilha Comprida	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W
Ilha de Palmas	...	23 ° 2 ′  S , 43 ° 12 ′  W

history

There is no consensus on the origin of the name. Most widely believed that the name comes from the large amount of excrement that resident seabirds leave on the islands. The rich calcium-rich droppings make the islands appear white. An alternative theory has the name of the islands to the Portuguese Cagarra called Shearwater although on the genus Calonectris back, Madeira and the Azores are located, can not, however, refer to the Cagarras Islands.

In 1730 the main island of Cagarra appears on a nautical chart with the French name Ilha Cagade . On another map from 1767, the same island is given its Portuguese name Ilha Cagarra .

Web links

• Gallery with pictures of the archipelago
• Background information and pictures of the individual islands (Portuguese)