Mauke, Mitiaro and Atiu are deeply eroded volcanic islands in the southern Cook Islands, south Pacific, each surrounded by a rim of elevated Cenozoic reef limestone (makatea). This paper presents the results of instrumental topographic surveys of each
Fruit bats of the genus Pteropus are considered to be strong fliers (Kingdon, 1974; Nowak and Paradiso, 1983), with some species commuting distances of 10-50 km between day roosts and feeding areas (Breadon, 1932; Ferrar, 1934; Hall, 1983; Lim,
1966; McWilliam, 1985-1986; Ratcliffe, 1932; Taylor, 1934; Walton and Trowbridge, 1983). Longer seasonal movements of > 100 km are known for several species of Australian Pteropus, which change roosting sites in response to shifting patterns in the
This review was prepared on very short notice, to
provide a summary of what is known to the reviewer at the
time, June 1988, about the natural phenomena of the Marshall
Islands. This was for the use of the members of the survay
team sent to the Marshalls by the Environment and Policy
Institute of the East-West Center, Honolulu. Their mission
was to investigate the remaining relatively natural areas
and the extent of biodiversity in the new Republic of the
Marshall Islands.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
On the 21 small islands located within the northern bays and reef systems of Tongatapu, Tonga, species of terrestrial flora present were identified, and vegetation units and gemorphological features surveyed on 12 that were previously unmapped. A species/ area plot of the data shows that rock islands are consistently more diverse than sand islands. Size of flora is also a function of frequency of human use of islands,
Field work conducted by the senior author at Bikini
Atoll, Marshall Islands, in May 1986 yielded twenty-three
species of birds; six of these were documented as nesting
and an additional four species almost certainly nest as
well. Six species were previously unrecorded for Bikini
Atoll, and one of these, the Laughing Gull (Larus
atricilla) was new to Micronesia. The recorded avifauna
for Bikini Atoll now stands at twenty-six species. Major
seabird colonies were located on Aomoen (and other
The vertebrate fauna of Rotuma consists of over 425
fish species, no amphibians, 11 terrestrial reptiles, 15
land birds and two native mammals. The zoogeographic
affinity of the Rotuman fish fauna is with the Pacific
plate fauna; in contrast, the affinity of the reptile fauna
is with the Fijian fauna. A species list of Rotuman
occurrence is provided for each of the four vertebrate
groups as well as brief descriptions of the marine and
terrestrial habitats.
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Several large regions of the world are plagued by
conservation problems shaped around a particular inherent
set of geographical, biological and human conditions which
have been operational for varying periods of time. Typical
of situations facing Latin America are the progress of
economic development in Amazonia with its attendant loss of
rainforest biodiversity, and the Central American
"hamburger connection" involving conversion of forests to
grazing land to support the export of cheap beef to the
This paper attempts to provide a comprehensive listing and analysis of Kiribati plant names, along with the corresponding Latin, English, and selected Pacific-island vernacular names for plant species with recognized Kiribati vernacular names. The study focuses on those species found on the 16 islands
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.
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).
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The Clipperton atoll (10°18'N, 109°13'W) is closed and holds a
lagoon with marked stratification; surface waters are brackish
(S=4/6%), but deep waters show a salinity close to that of seawater and high concentrations of H2S; temperature and pH are high. In this paper, environmental data concerning the atoll, the lagoon and the surrounding ocean are recalled and are followed by the study of the zooplankton of the lagoon and ocean.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 17 p.
Mataiva Atoll, one of 84 in French Polynesia, is a small coral
island at the western edge of the Tuamotu Archipelago. This atoll occupies a particular place among the French Polynesian atolls since the discovery beneath the lagoon sediments of deposits of phosphates soon to be exploited. In order to estimate the environmental effects of such exploitation and plan a management scheme, numerous studies have been carried out since 1978 by many scientific organizations: Antenne du
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.
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.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 42 p.
At the time of the POBSP visit, cats (Felis domestica), dogs
Although the atoll was discovered in 1796 and claimed by the United States in 1858, it was uninhabited except for brief visits by guano miners, adventurers, government scientists and military personnel until 1936, when the U.S. Navy began developing first a seaplane base and later an airstrip and refueling facilities which served as an important link from
the Hawaiian Islands to the western Pacific during World War II.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 502 p.
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.
During the period February 13 to 20, 1973, a visit was made to Canton Island for the purpose of conducting a preliminary survey of marine turtle nesting populations. Although previous investigators have described the sea birds (Buddle, 1938; Murphy G., 1954), insects (Van Zwaluwenburg, 1943, 1955), and vegetation (Hatheway, 1955), very little is known about the marine environment of Canton or the other seven atolls (Enderbury, Birnie, Phoenix, Sydney, Hull, Gardner and McKean) which comprise the Phoenix group.
In 1965 Vostok Island was visited briefly by Sibley and five members of the Pacific Ocean Biological Survey Program (POBSPJ of the Smithsonian Institution. Observations were made from 0900 15 June through 1300 16 June and collections were made of vascular plants, fish, reptiles, birds, mammals, and avian ectoparasites. A small number of seabirds was banded.
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Physical Description: 12 Pages
Satawal is a small flat coral island in the west central Caroline Islands about 1050 km east-south-east of Yap Island, at latitude 7'21' N, longitude 147'02' E. Although its surface is locally somewhat irregular, its greatest height is not more than about 4 meters above mean low water. Its long axis is about east-west and its area is 1.3 square km. It is surrounded by a fringing reef upward of 100 meters wide. It has no lagoon, so would be classified according to Tayama's scheme as a table reef. From the viewpoint of land ecology it is an atoll.