Motu One (Marquesan for "Sand Island"; French: Îlot de Sable) is the name of a small sandbank with no vegetation, located on the western edge of a coralreef; the only atoll in the Marquesas Islands. The reef is approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) in diameter, and the islet has a surface area of less than one hectare, rising only a few feet above sea level and changing shape regularly as the action of the currents deposits and removes sand.[1]
Motu One
Northwestern Marquesas Islands. Motu One and its lagoon are the pale blue oval shape in the upper right. Image courtesy of Johnson Space Center.
Motu One is the northernmost of the Marquesas Islands, located about 30 kilometres (19 mi) northeast of Eïao and 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) northeast of Hatutu. It is a calcareous coral reef on a volcanic plug - the only island in the group not made of exposed volcanic material.[1]
Although Motu One was reportedly visited by Marquesans, primarily on egg-collecting missions, there is no archaeological evidence that it was ever inhabited. The first Westerners to sight the islet were those on the 1813–1814 voyage of the American commander Commodore David Porter, who named it Lincoln Island. Subsequent explorers called it Sand Island.
There are a wide variety of pelagic birds nesting on the islets including a subspecies of the southern Marquesan reed warbler, the Mohotani Marquesan warbler (Acrocephalus mendanae consobrina) (Murphy & Mathews, 1928).[2]
motu, marquesas, islands, island, named, motu, among, society, islands, motu, society, islands, motu, marquesan, sand, island, french, Îlot, sable, name, small, sandbank, with, vegetation, located, western, edge, coral, reef, only, atoll, marquesas, islands, r. For the island named Motu One among the Society Islands see Motu One Society Islands Motu One Marquesan for Sand Island French Ilot de Sable is the name of a small sandbank with no vegetation located on the western edge of a coral reef the only atoll in the Marquesas Islands The reef is approximately 5 kilometres 3 1 mi in diameter and the islet has a surface area of less than one hectare rising only a few feet above sea level and changing shape regularly as the action of the currents deposits and removes sand 1 Motu OneNorthwestern Marquesas Islands Motu One and its lagoon are the pale blue oval shape in the upper right Image courtesy of Johnson Space Center Motu OneLocation of Motu One in the Pacific OceanGeographyLocationSouth Pacific OceanCoordinates7 51 S 140 23 W 7 85 S 140 38 W 7 85 140 38ArchipelagoMarquesas IslandsArea0 03 km2 0 012 sq mi AdministrationFranceOverseas countryFrench PolynesiaDemographicsPopulation0 2002 Pop density0 km2 0 sq mi Motu One is the northernmost of the Marquesas Islands located about 30 kilometres 19 mi northeast of Eiao and 15 kilometres 9 3 mi northeast of Hatutu It is a calcareous coral reef on a volcanic plug the only island in the group not made of exposed volcanic material 1 Motu One is administratively part of the commune municipality of Nuku Hiva itself in the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas Although Motu One was reportedly visited by Marquesans primarily on egg collecting missions there is no archaeological evidence that it was ever inhabited The first Westerners to sight the islet were those on the 1813 1814 voyage of the American commander Commodore David Porter who named it Lincoln Island Subsequent explorers called it Sand Island Contents 1 Ecology 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksEcology editGreen sea turtles nest on Motu One There is a large stand of Porolithon Hydrolithon that is unique in French Polynesia 1 There are a wide variety of pelagic birds nesting on the islets including a subspecies of the southern Marquesan reed warbler the Mohotani Marquesan warbler Acrocephalus mendanae consobrina Murphy amp Mathews 1928 2 Since 1992 the whole reef and island ecosystem have been protected as the Motu One Reserve 3 See also edit nbsp Islands portal Marquesan Nature Reserves Desert island List of islandsReferences edit a b c Status of Coral Reefs in French Polynesia PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2013 10 04 Retrieved 2011 11 29 Marquesan Reed warbler Acrocephalus mendanae Biodiversite et Conservation en Outre mer Polynesie francaise PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2007 10 14 Retrieved 2011 11 29 External links editSociete d Ornithologie de Polynesie MANU nbsp This French Polynesia related geography article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Motu One Marquesas Islands amp oldid 1094270317, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
