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Calala Island is a private island located in the
Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
, forming part of an archipelago of islands known as the
Pearl Cays The Pearl Cays ( Spanish: ''Cayos Perlas'') is a group of 18 cays located about from Pearl Lagoon (Spanish: Laguna de Perlas) off the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. They are part of the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The Pearl Cays are c ...
, off the coast of
Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the count ...
. Calala Island is privately owned by the Wickham family. The whole island operates as a luxury resort, accommodating a maximum of eight guests.


History

Calala Island is situated in an area known as the Moskito Coast. Historically, the coast of Nicaragua and islands close to it have been under the rule of both the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
and the Spanish. In the 1600s, the British first settled on Old Providence, which is around east of Calala Island in the Caribbean Sea. The
Providence Island Company The Providence Company or Providence Island Company was an English chartered company founded in 1629 by a group of Puritans including Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick in order to establish the Providence Island colony on Providence Island and Mosq ...
based in the area was set up to transport goods from the ''"Moskito Kingdom"'' as the British often referred to it. According to maps and documents from this period, the Pearl Cays and Calala Island were part of this territory. During this period, the Spanish more aggressively attempted to influence the region, with the first contact from the Spanish in the region dating back to 1545. By the early 1600s, the Spanish controlled a large territory in the neighbouring countries, such as Nicaragua and
Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
. The French-pirate François l'Olonnais is known to have spent time on the Pearl Cays in the mid-1600s. He spoke of a natives who resided on the island at this time in history, referring to them as primitive, but also as cannibals. When the Treaty of Managua was signed in 1860 between the British and Nicaragua, Calala Island became a Nicaraguan island.


Ecosystem

The ecosystem on the island has a number of notable species, mainly
seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same envir ...
s and
turtle Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked t ...
s. According to accounts from François l'Olonnais, parrots and monkeys were previously located in the Pearl Cays region. The critically endangered
hawksbill sea turtle The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is large ...
are often seen on the island and is part of a conservation effort to increase the numbers. Calala Island's owners and the
Wildlife Conservation Society The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a non-governmental organization headquartered at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, that aims to conserve the world's largest wild places in 14 priority regions. Founded in 1895 as the New York Zoological ...
have increased nesting numbers considerably since the partnership began. It is estimated that nests on the island have increased significantly, with around 6000 eggs laid on the island by the Hawksbills each year. Laying season for the turtles is from May through to November, with hatchings taking place September through to February. Other islands species include the
American yellow warbler The yellow warbler (''Setophaga petechia'') is a New World warbler species. Yellow warblers are the most widespread species in the diverse genus '' Setophaga'', breeding in almost the whole of North America, the Caribbean, and down to northern ...
, the white-necked puffbird,
hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics ...
s and the magnificent frigatebird.


Location

Calala Island is located in the Caribbean Sea and is part of the Pearl Cays archipelago, off the coast of
Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the count ...
. The island is under the administration of the
South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region The South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region is one of two autonomous regions in Nicaragua. It covers an area of and has a population of 420,935 (2021 estimate). The capital is Bluefields. Bordering the Caribbean Sea, it contains part of the reg ...
. At some point in its history, the name of the island changed from Lime Cay to Calala Island. The likelihood is due to a name clash with a
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispanio ...
n cay. The island is located around 4 km off the Nicaraguan coast lying 27 km from Pearl Lagoon and 150 km west of San Andres, Ciudad Sandino, Nicaragua.


Private ownership

In 1997, a number of
Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the count ...
n islands were purchased by the businessman, Peter Tsokos. Calala Island was one of these islands and like many islands in the Caribbean, the purchase raised questions about the split between private and public use at the time. Necker island is one such example of this ongoing debate. Some in the media suggested Tsokos bought the islands as an investment, with the aims of developing these islands. Tim and Sarah Wickham purchased Calala Island after their honeymoon on
Petit St Vincent Petit St Vincent, known locally as PSV, is an island south of St. Vincent in the Grenadine islands. It is the southernmost island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The island is privately owned and operates as a resort. The resort has 22 ...
, with the aim of creating a resort on the island. The Wickham's then developed the island with the construction of a luxury resort. The island resort contains four guest suites at the beachfront, accommodating a total of 8 guests. During interviews, Wickham stated that he wanted the island to be exclusive, but also protect the
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
. Apart from the suites, the island has 25 staff, a bar, two restaurants and a helipad. It received media coverage in 2017 after a week-long vacation had a price tag of $1 million. In early 2018, it was announced that Princess Eugenie became engaged to Jack Brooksbank while vacationing on Calala Island.


See also

* Tourism in Nicaragua * Pearl Lagoon


References


External links


Calala Island
geographical data {{Authority control Islands of the West Caribbean Private islands of the Caribbean Caribbean islands of Nicaragua