Morane (atoll)

Moraine
	NASA image by Morane
Waters	Pacific Ocean
archipelago	Tuamotu Archipelago
Geographical location	23 ° 10 ′ S , 137 ° 8 ′ W Coordinates: 23 ° 10 ′ S , 137 ° 8 ′ W
Number of islands	-
Land area	2 km²
Lagoon area	11 km²
Residents	uninhabited

Morane is an uninhabited atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia . Administratively, Morane belongs to the municipality of Gambier . The nearest atoll is Maria Est , 153 km southwest.

Morane is the southernmost atoll of the Tuamotu group. It reaches the dimensions of 4.8 km long × 3.2 km wide. The atoll's lagoon has no access to the sea.

history

The atoll was sighted by whaler Nathaniel Cary in 1832. He named the island after the name of his ship ( Gideon Barstow ), "Barstow Island". On some maps the atoll is also shown under the name "Cadmus".

fauna and Flora

The Morane Atoll has the largest population of the southern sea sandpiper (Prosobonia cancellata) of around 150 to 200 individuals. Coconut palms grow on the atoll .

Web links

Image and short description (English) ( Memento of 23 December 2010 at the Internet Archive )
Derivation of the island name (English)
Tuamotuichthys bispinosus, article about a new fish species (English)
Travel report on the bird life of the atoll and other atolls of the Tuamotu Archipelago (English)