Cape Taputapu (Samoan: Tolotolo i Taputapu) is the name of a

cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...

located in the Western District of

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...

. Located in

Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, A ...

, it is the island's westernmost point. The cape was designated as a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...

in 1972. Cape Taputapu is an important site in Samoan legends and also the location of a

fruit bat Megabats constitute the family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera (bats). They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genera '' Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus''—flying foxes. They are the only member of the ...

colony. The coastline represents geologic features and an important habitat for

intertidal The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide (in other words, the area within the tidal range). This area can include several types of habitats with various species ...

flora and fauna. Taputapu is also the name of a nearby islet known as Taputapu Island. Taputapu means forbidden in Samoan, and the cape was named so as it was the only site on

where paper mulberry trees were found. The discoverers wanted to keep the site and bark for themselves so they could sell it to other parts of American Samoa. The cape's shoreline features volcanic rocks and blowholes created by the strong wave activity which also created Tutuila Island as a whole. It can be hiked during times of low tide, from a trail located in the village of Poloa. The cape is the last place on Tutuila where the sun sets.

References

Landforms of American Samoa Headlands of Oceania National Natural Landmarks in American Samoa {{AmericanSamoa-geo-stub

See also

References