The islands of the southern Cook and Austral groups in
the South Pacific exhibit astonishing differences in geology
and topography, even between closely adjacent islands of
similar ages. Some are sea-level atolls, others have low
fringes of Pleistocene raised reefs, and others substantial
rims of elevated mid-Tertiary limestones, locally known as
makatea. On some islands the relief of the makatea is
subdued, but on others it is dominated by eroded volcanics,
sea-level swamps, and vertical limestone walls. Sixty years
The purpose of the present study is to: 1/ list the presently known heterodont bivalve fauna of the Cook Islands, 2/ document the habitat specificity of the species involved in as much detail as possible, and 3/ investigate the correlation between a species' habitat specificity and its distribution among the various islands. While several studies have been done on the molluscan fauna of inner reef environments on Pacific islands (though bivalves are often neglected), there has been little work on the fauna of the outer reef slope.
Located at 148°15' West and 15°50' South, in the northwesternmost part of the Tuamotu archipelago (Central Pacific), Makatea island is isolated from its nearest
neighbouring atolls, Rangiroa and Tikehau by about 80 km, and it is 245 km from its closest volcanic neighbour, Tahiti. This island rises at least 3,500 m above the sea floor.
The island was first mentioned by Roggeveen in 1722
(JOURDAIN 1970), but visits became regular only during the
XlXth century. An evangelist, of the "London Missionary
Society" settled down in 1829 (NEWBURY 1986), which supposes
that exchanges with the outside were regular at that time.
This probably explains the presence of bird specimens
collected outside the Scientific Expeditions (e.g. description of Ptilinopus purpuratus chalcurus in 1859 by GRAY).
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
The Northern Line Islands consists of four atolls aligned on
an an axis which runs from south east to north west. The three southern islands Christmas (Kiritiraati), Fanning (Tabuaeran) and Washington (Teraina) have permanent populations and are part of the Republic of Kiribati. The fourth island, Palmyra, on the north end of the chain, is an unoccupied U.S. possession.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 39 p.
The conservation status, ecology, and cultural importance of sea turtles at the three Polynesian atolls of Tokelau are presented. The green turtle, Chelonia mydas. is the most common species, occurring as a migrant breeder mostly during September through November. The hawks- bill, Eretmochelvs imbricata. is present in small numbers at all three atolls, but nesting is only known at Nukunonu Atoll. A third species, the loggerhead, Caretta caretta. has also been recorded on rare occasions.
Landing on Swains Island is made on the west side at Taulaga, the only village on the island. Besides a small number of thatched, Samoan- style huts ("fale"), Taulaga has a small white church and a large, barn- like copra shed. Leading from the copra shed to the nearby beach are old railway tracks which were once used to transport copra from the shed to the beach for transfer to cargo vessels. Nearby is a large cleared area that may one day be made into an airport runway to link Swains Island by air to Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa.
Species-numbers relationships in the McKean Island assemblage
of reef-building corals were investigated to discover how they changed along environmental gradients of the reef. For the purposes of the study, two gradients were identified a complex depth gradient and a wave exposure gradient.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 42 p.
At the time of the POBSP visit, cats (Felis domestica), dogs
As of 1969, the scientific community had no general information on the natural history of Namoluk Atoll in the Eastern Caroline Islands of Micronesia. The only significant published source for the atoll was an ethnographic and linguistic account provided by the German physician.
Interface habitats, areas where aquatic and terrestrial habitats intersect, play important functional roles. Interface habitats mediate the exchange of resources (e.g.. energy,
nutrients, water), alter abiotic gradients (e.g.. temperature, salinity, pH. sedimentation, nutrients), insulate abutting habitats from disturbances, and serve as critical habitat in
During participation in part of the Fairbridge Expedition
to New Guinea, February to May, 1969, I had opportunity to visit 17 islands and cays east of the New Guinea mainland for sufficient time to assemble reasonably complete collections oi their terrestrial reptilian fauna. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of that survey. Fairbridge (1971 ) has previously published a brief report on the expedition and. a more detailed one is in preparation.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 41 p.
Today, May 10th, in addition to being SIDS Day, coincides with the release, in Nairobi, Kenya, of the third
edition of Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-3). This major new assessment of the current state of
biodiversity and the implications of its continued loss for human well-being was produced by the
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the broadest international treaty for the conservation and
sustainable use of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits from the utilization of genetic
CEPA Environment Permit Application Form to Discharge Waste Schedule and Additional Information Schedule 2.
The Tonga State of the Environment 2018 report has been developed to answer three key questions related
to the environment of Tonga, and is based on seven thematic areas:
• What is the current condition of the Tongan environment?
• What are the risks the Tongan environment faces and what measures have been put forward to minimise them? This could provide lessons for Tonga.
• Where is the environment of Tonga headed based on the assessed thematic areas?
This data set is a digital soil survey and generally is the most detailed level of soil geographic data developed by the National Cooperative Soil Survey.
The dataset is included the Digital Atlas of Micronesia, module Pohnpei, by Island Research & Education Initiative (iREi), in collaboration with Water and Environmental Research Institute of the Western Pacific (WERI) University of Guam and partial funding from United States Geological Survey (USGS), under WRRI 104-B Program, project # 2016GU302B.
The Dataset contains and will contain the following: • Updated text; • National R2R website or associated links; • Social media account names/handles – FB, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube etc; • Newsletters ; • Articles ; • Videos • Photographs • Resources – Concept/Technical Notes, Guides, Posters etc.
This is for R2R consultancy announcement
Data on Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) includes information on Palau's forests 2013-2014. The Pacific Northwest Forest Inventory and Analysis (PNW-FIA) program measures and compiles data on plots in coastal Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, and U.S.- affiliated Pacific Islands. Most data are available in Access databases and can be downloaded by clicking one of the links below. PNW data are combined with data from all states in the U.S. and stored in the national FIADB. Data for any state can be accessed on the national website (see links to national tools below).