Saint-François Atoll
| Saint-François Atoll | ||
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 the island of Saint-François in front |
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| Waters | Indian Ocean | |
| archipelago | Alphonse group | |
| Geographical location | 7 ° 7 ′ S , 52 ° 45 ′ E | |
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| Number of islands | 2 | |
| Main island | Saint-François | |
| Land area | 0.196 km² | |
| Lagoon area | approx. 40 km² | |
| Residents | uninhabited | |
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The Saint-François Atoll is an uninhabited atoll in the Indian Ocean . It belongs to the Alphonse Group and thus to the Outer Islands of the Republic of the Seychelles . It was discovered on January 28, 1730 and named after Saint Francis de Sales (French Saint François de Sales ).
The atoll consists of two islands, the larger Saint-François island in the south and the smaller Bijoutier island in the north of the atoll.
- Saint-François , reachable within 30 minutes by boat from the neighboring Alphonse Atoll , has an area of 0.176 km². The geographical coordinates are 7 ° 9 ' S , 52 ° 44' O .
- Bijoutier , accessible from Alphonse by boat at low tide, has an area of only 0.02 km² and can be walked around in a few minutes. The geographical coordinates are 7 ° 4 ' S , 52 ° 44' O .
The total land area of the atoll is 0.196 km², the area including the lagoon, however, about 45 km². There are no natural freshwater springs on the islands. The fauna includes frigate birds and the blue crab .