| Lord Howe Island | |
|---|---|
 Unofficial but regularly-flown flag of Lord Howe Island |
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| Geography | |
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| Location | Lord Howe Island Group |
| Coordinates | |
| Area | 56 km² (22 sq mi) |
| Highest point | Mount Gower 875 m (2,870 ft) |
| Administration | |
 Australia |
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| Administrative Division | Unincorporated area of New South Wales self-governed by Lord Howe Island Board Part of the electoral district of Port Macquarie Part of the Division of Sydney |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 350 permanent residents. Lord Howe Island (ˈhaʊ is a small island in the Pacific Ocean east of the Australian mainland For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. In Law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any Municipality. Port Macquarie is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. The Division of Sydney is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. Tourists are restricted to 400 at any one time. |
| Density | 23. 97/km² (62. 1/sq mi)/km² |
- For the island off Solomon Islands, see Ontong Java Atoll
Lord Howe Island (pronounced /ˈhaʊ/) is a small island in the Pacific Ocean 600 kilometres (373 mi) east of the Australian mainland. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Along with Ball's Pyramid, it is administered by the Lord Howe Island Board, one of 175 local authorities in the state of New South Wales, and is part of the Mid-North Coast Statistical Division. Ball's Pyramid is an erosional remnant of a Shield volcano and Caldera that formed about 7 million years ago It is not considered a Local Government Area and is therefore unincorporated (as is the Unincorporated Far West Region), but is self-governed by the Lord Howe Island Board [2]. Local Government Area (abbreviated LGA) is a term used in Australia (and especially by the Australian Bureau of Statistics) to refer to areas controlled In Law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any Municipality. The Unincorporated Far West Region is the part of New South Wales which is not part of any Local Government Area; it is in the Far West containing The Lord Howe Island group was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1982 in recognition of its unique beauty and biodiversity. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) The Lord Howe Island Marine Park and Lord Howe Island Marine Park (commonwealth waters) protect the waters surrounding the island group. Lord Howe Island Marine Park consists of the waters to 3 nautical miles (6 km off Lord Howe Island, Ball's Pyramid and a New South Wales state marine park Lord Howe Island Marine Park (commonwealth waters is a 300063 km² Marine park managed by the Department of the Environment and Heritage, adjacent to the
The island's standard time zone is UTC+10:30. UTC+1030 is the Time zone for the following locations Lord Howe Island Standard Time ACDT&mdashAustralian Central During daylight saving time this shifts by half an hour to UTC+11. Daylight saving time ( DST UTC+11 is the Time zone for the following locations As standard (non-DST time Federated States of Micronesia
Contents |
History
Lord Howe Island was discovered on 17 February 1788 by HMS Supply, commanded by Lieutenant Henry Lidgbird Ball, RN, who was on his way from Botany Bay to Norfolk Island with convicts to start a penal settlement there. The third HMS Supply was a Royal Navy armed tender launched in 1759 which played an important part in the foundation of Australia. Henry Lidgbird Ball (1756-1818 was a Royal Navy officer best known for discovering and exploring Lord Howe Island. Botany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, a few kilometres south of the Sydney central business district. Norfolk Island ( Norfuk: Norfuk Ailen) is a small inhabited island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand On his return journey on 13 March 1788 he sent a party ashore on the island. It was uninhabited, and it seems that it had not been known to any of the Polynesian peoples of the South Pacific. Mount Lidgbird on the island and the nearby Ball's Pyramid are named after Ball. The island itself was named after Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe who was First Lord of the Admiralty. Richard Howe 1st Earl Howe KG ( 8 March, 1726 &ndash 5 August, 1799) was a British Admiral, notable in particular
Many government ships sailing between New South Wales and Norfolk Island stopped at the island, as did some whaling and trading vessels. Whaling is the hunting of Whales and dates back to at least 6000 BC Some ships left goats and pigs on the island for food for future visitors but a permanent settlement wasn't established until 1834 at an area known today as Old Settlement. The domestic goat ( Capra aegagrus hircus) is a subspecies of goat Domesticated from the Wild goat of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times Year 1834 ( MDCCCXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common
Until 1974 there was no airstrip and the only way to reach it by air was in a flying boat from Rose Bay in Sydney that landed on the lagoon surrounded by the coral reef. In 2002 the Royal Navy Destroyer HMS Nottingham struck Wolf Rock, a reef at Lord Howe Island, and almost sank. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) In naval terminology a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance Warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, Convoy Affiliations The Mercian Regiment No 8 Squadron RAF No 56(R Squadron RAF 307 (South Nottinghamshire [1]
Geology
Lord Howe island is roughly crescent-shaped, about 10 km (6 miles) long and 2 km (1 mile) wide. It is an eroded remnant of a 7 million-year-old shield volcano. A shield volcano is a large Volcano with shallow-sloping sides The crescent of the island protects a coral reef and lagoon. Coral reefs are Aragonite structures produced by living organisms found in marine waters with little to no nutrients in the water A lagoon is a body of comparatively shallow salt or Brackish water separated from the deeper Sea by a shallow or exposed sandbank, coral The Lord Howe seamount chain, defined by coral-capped guyots, extends to the north for 1000 km (600 mi), most likely the result of the Indo-Australian Plate moving northward over a stationary hotspot (see plate tectonics). The Lord Howe seamount chain is a Miocene Seamount chain on northern Lord Howe Rise, Zealandia. For the French viticulturist see Jules Guyot. For the Old French name see Guiot. The Indo-Australian Plate is a major Tectonic plate that includes the continent of Australia and surrounding Ocean, and extends northwest to include the In Geology, a hotspot is a location on the Earth's surface that has experienced active volcanism for a long period of time Plate tectonics (from Greek τέκτων tektōn "builder" or "mason" describes the large scale motions of Earth 's Lithosphere This chain is one of a number of features found on the plateau known as the Lord Howe Rise, part of the submerged continent of Zealandia. In Geology and Earth science, a plateau, also called a high plateau or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting The Lord Howe Rise is an underwater Plateau that extends from southwest of New Caledonia to the Challenger Plateau, west of New Zealand. Zealandia (ziːˈlæːndiə also known as Tasmantis or the New Zealand continent, is a nearly submerged Continent or Microcontinent that
Mount Lidgbird 777 metres (2,549 ft) and Mount Gower 875 m (2,871 ft) dominate the south end of the island. They are both made of basalt rock, remnants of lava flows that once filled a large volcanic caldera. Basalt (bəˈsɔːlt ˈbeisɔːlt ˈbæsɔːlt is a common Extrusive Volcanic rock. Lava is molten rock expelled by a Volcano during an eruption When first expelled from a volcanic vent it is a Liquid at Temperatures A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption These lava flows occurred 6. 4 million years ago, and were the last volcanic events on the island, which has subsequently eroded to what remains today.
The coral reef, at 31° S. , is the most southerly in the world.
Ball's Pyramid is a rocky islet located 16 km (10 mi) south of Lord Howe Island, and also the remnant of an eroded volcano. Ball's Pyramid is an erosional remnant of a Shield volcano and Caldera that formed about 7 million years ago It is the largest of several volcanic stacks that form islets in the area. A stack is a geological Landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock in the sea near a coast
Flora and Fauna
| Lord Howe Island Group* | |
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| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
| State Party | Australia |
| Type | Natural |
| Criteria | vii, x |
| Reference | 186 |
| Region† | Asia-Pacific |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 1982 (6th Session) |
| * Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. † Region as classified by UNESCO. |
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Lord Howe island is a distinct terrestrial ecoregion, known as the Lord Howe Island subtropical forests. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex As of 2008 there are a total of 878 World Heritage Sites located in 145 "State Parties" For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex This is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Asia, Australia and the Pacific ( Australia) A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex An ecoregion ( ecological region) sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area smaller than a "realm" or " Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF also known as tropical moist forests, are a Tropical and Subtropical Forest It is part of the Australasia ecozone, and shares many biotic affinities with Australia, New Guinea, and New Caledonia. The Australasian zone is an ecological region that is coincident but not synonymous (by some definitions with the geographic Region of Australasia New Guinea, located just north of Australia, is the world's second largest island, having become separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known For the former North American fur-trading district see New Caledonia (Canada, and for the Scottish colony in Panama see Darien scheme. Lord Howe Island was never part of a continent, and all of its flora and fauna colonized the island from across the sea. Almost half of the island's native plants are endemic. Endemism is the Ecological state of being unique to a place Endemic species are not naturally found elsewhere One of the best known is Howea, an endemic genus of palms (Arecaceae) that are commonly known as kentia palms and make handsome houseplants. Howea is a genus of two palms, H belmoreana and H forsteriana, both endemic to Lord Howe Island, A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Arecaceae or Palmae (also known by the name Palmaceae, which is taxonomically invalid or commonly palm tree) the palm family is a family of Flowering The Kentia palm or Thatch palm ( Howea forsteriana) is endemic to Lord Howe Island. Several million are exported annually providing the only major industry on the island apart from tourism.
Another endemic feature of the island are the Glowing Mushrooms, that can be seen after heavy rain. Found in the Palm forests, they can be picked and last for a number of days glowing. The glow is so bright that you can read by it in the dark. 14 species of seabirds and 18 species of landbirds breed on the island group, including an endemic species, the Lord Howe Woodhen (Gallirallus sylvestris) and 3 endemic subspecies, the Lord Howe Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis contempta), the Lord Howe White-eye (Zosterops lateralis tephropleurus) and the Lord Howe Currawong (Strepera graculina crissalis). The Lord Howe Woodhen, Gallirallus sylvestris, also known as the Lord Howe Island Woodhen or Lord Howe (Island Rail, is a flightless Bird In Zoology, as in other branches of Biology, subspecies is the Taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a Species. The family Pachycephalidae includes the whistlers shrike-thrushes shrike-tits Pitohuis and Crested Bellbird and is part of the ancient Australo-Papuan radiation The white-eyes are small Passerine Birds native to tropical subtropical and temperate Sub-Saharan Africa, southern and eastern Asia Currawongs are medium-sized Passerine birds of the family Artamidae native to Australasia.
A number of endemic bird species and subspecies have become extinct since the arrival of humans on the island. In Zoology, as in other branches of Biology, subspecies is the Taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a Species. The Lord Howe Swamphen or White Gallinule (Porphyrio albus), the White-throated Pigeon (Columba vitiensis godmanae), Red-fronted Parakeet (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae subflavescens) and the Tasman Booby (Sula tasmani) were eliminated by settlers during the nineteenth century. The Lord Howe Swamphen or White Gallinule, Porphyrio albus, was a large Bird in the family Rallidae endemic to Lord Howe Island The three species of Kākāriki or New Zealand parakeets are the most common Species of Parakeet in the Genus Cyanoramphus The Tasman Booby ( Sula (dactylatra tasmani) was a large Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae, described from bones found on The accidental introduction of the Black Rat in the 1918 shipwreck of the Makambo triggered a second wave of extinctions including the Vinous-tinted Thrush (Turdus poliocephalus vinitinctus), the Robust White-eye (Zosterops strenuus) and the Lord Howe Starling (Alponis fusca hulliana), the Lord Howe Fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa cervina) and the Lord Howe Gerygone (Gerygone insularis). The Lord Howe Island Thrush ( Turdus poliocephalus vinitinctus) also known as Vinous-tinted Thrush or Lord Howe Island Vinous-tinted blackbird, is an extinct UserPolbot. -->The Robust White-eye ( Zosterops strenuus) also known as the Lord Howe White-eye or The Lord Howe Starling ( Aplonis fuscus hullianus) is an extinct race of the Norfolk Starling ( Aplonis fusca) UserPolbot. -->The Lord Howe Gerygone ( Gerygone insularis) was a species of Bird in the Acanthizidae
Only one native mammal remains on the islands, the Large Forest Bat (Eptesicus sagittula). Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The endemic bat species (Nyctophilus howensis) is known only from a skull and is now presumed extinct. The cause of its extinction may have been predation by Masked Owl, introduced to the island in the 1920s to control rats. The Masked Owl may also have caused the extinction of the Lord Howe Boobook (Ninox novaeseelandiae albaria). The southern boobook ( Ninox novaeseelandiae) also called the mopoke or morepork, is a small brown Owl found mainly in New Zealand
Two terrestrial reptiles are native to the island group: a skink (Leiolopisma lichenigera)) and a gecko (Phyllodactylus guentheri). Skinks are the most diverse group of Lizards They make the family Scincidae which shares the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha with several other Geckos are small to average sized Lizards belonging to the family Gekkonidae which are found in warm climates throughout the world Both are rare on the main island but more common on smaller islands offshore. Another skink (Lampropholis delicata) and the Bleating Tree Frog (Litoria dentata) have been accidentally introduced from the Australian mainland in recent years. Skinks are the most diverse group of Lizards They make the family Scincidae which shares the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha with several other The Bleating Tree Frog or Keferstein's Tree Frog ( Litoria dentata) is a Tree frog of the genus Litoria.
The Lord Howe Island stick insect (Dryococelus australis) disappeared from the main island soon after the introduction of Black rats. The Lord Howe Island stick insect ( Dryococelus australis) was thought to be extinct by 1930 only to be rediscovered in 2001 (this phenomenon is known as the " In 2001 a tiny population was discovered in a single (Melaleuca howeana) shrub on the slopes of Ball's Pyramid.
Another endemic invertebrate, the Lord Howe Placostylus, has also been affected by the introduction of the black rat. The Lord Howe Flax Snail or the Lord Howe Placostylus, Placostylus bivaricosus, is a large terrestrial snail found only on Lord Howe Island Once common, the species is now endangered and a captive breeding program is under way to save the snail from extinction.
Australian underwater photographer Neville Coleman has a book 1001 Nudibranches - Catalog of Indo-Pacific Sea Slugs that features many photographs of various nudibranches taken in Lord Howe' Island. A nudibranch (pronounced (BrE or (AmE is a member of one Suborder of soft-bodied shell-less marine Opisthobranch Gastropod Mollusks
Over 400 fish species are found in the waters around Lord Howe including 9 endemic to the region. Over 80 species of coral occur in the reefs surrounding the islands. Corals are Marine organisms from the class Anthozoa and exist as small Sea anemone –like Polyps typically in colonies of many
About 10 percent of Lord Howe Island's forests have been cleared for agriculture, and another 20 percent has been disturbed by domestic cattle and feral sheep, goats, and pigs. Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family The domestic goat ( Capra aegagrus hircus) is a subspecies of goat Domesticated from the Wild goat of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times Despite a large number of introduced species that harm Lord Howe's native flora and fauna, feral pigs have recently been eliminated from the island, the goat population has been reduced, and there are ongoing efforts to control rats, mice, and introduced plants. Rats are various medium sized long-tailed Rodents of the superfamily Muroidea A mouse (plural mice) is a small Animal that belongs to one A recovery program has restored the Lord Howe Woodhen numbers from only 20 in 1970 to approximately 200. The Lord Howe Woodhen, Gallirallus sylvestris, also known as the Lord Howe Island Woodhen or Lord Howe (Island Rail, is a flightless Bird
Threats
According to the analysis in Tim Flannery's The Weather Makers, the ecosystem of Lord Howe Island would be threatened by climate change and global warming. Timothy Fridtjof Flannery (born 28 January 1956) is an Australian mammalogist palaeontologist and Global warming activist The Weather Makers The History and Future Impact of Climate Change (2005 is a book by Tim Flannery. Climate change is any long-term significant change in the “average weather” that a given region experiences Global warming is the increase in the average measured temperature of the The reefs would be at risk from rises in water temperature. The Great Barrier Reef is specifically identified as being at risk to the effects of global warming on Australia, and the same analysis applies to the reefs of Lord Howe Island. The Great Barrier Reef is the largest Coral reef system in the world composed of over 2900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for 2600 kilometres (1600 mi See also Effects of global warming This article is about predicted impacts of Climate change and Global warming on Australia and [2] Cool climate flora and fauna would be at risk from rises in temperature, as those on or near the top of Mount Gower cannot migrate higher to stay within their preferred temperature range. Many bird species are also under constant threat in the island as a result of rats. The island's bird population has been signifigantly reduced by them and some species have already been wiped out because of rats.
See also
- Jim Lacey - Former administrator of Lord Howe Island beginning in 1983. James Francis Lacey ( 1934 - January 31, 2008) was a Australian whose work was considered instrumental in the development of the Western Plains An Administrator ( Administrator of the Government, Officer Administering the Government) in the constitutional practice of some countries in the Commonwealth Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) [3]
- Lord Howe Island Airport
Notes
- ^ "Battle to save stricken warship", BBC News, 2002-07-07. Lord Howe Island Airport is a regional and international airport providing air transportation to Lord Howe Island, Australia. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1456 - A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her death Retrieved on 2007-03-08. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion.
- ^ Jones, R. N. (2004) Managing Climate Change Risks, in Agrawala, S. and Corfee-Morlot, J. (eds. ), The Benefits of Climate Change Policies: Analytical and Framework Issues, OECD, Paris, 249–298, cited in the CSIRO's Climate Change Impacts on Australia and the Benefits of Early Action to Reduce Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions" [1]
- ^ North, Bill. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation ( CSIRO) is the national government body for scientific research in Australia. "Death of zoo pioneer", Dubbo Daily Liberal, 2008-02-18. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 3102 BC - Epoch (origin of the Kali Yuga. 1229 - The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II Holy Retrieved on 2008-02-21. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 362 - Athanasius returns to Alexandria. 1245 - Thomas, the first known Bishop of Finland
References
- Hutton, Ian (1998). The Australian Geographic Book of Lord Howe Island. Australian Geographic. The Australian Geographic is a quarterly geographical journal created by Dick Smith in 1985. ISBN 1-876276-27-4.
External links
- Lord Howe Island Tourism Association web site (Regarded by local residents as the "Official" home page)
- Lord Howe Island subtropical forests (World Wide Fund for Nature)
- Rodent eradication on Lord Howe Island (Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife)
- Jane's Lord Howe Island Page
- Chart of Lord Howe Island by J. Stockdale from 1789, at the National Maritime Museum
- Wikiscuba - Lord Howe Island
- Maps
- Map of Lord Howe Island (in Russian).
- Lord Howe Island is at coordinates Coordinates:
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