Danger Island is the westernmost and the southernmost island of the Great Chagos Bank, which is the world's largest coral

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most ...

structure, located in the

Chagos Archipelago The Chagos Archipelago (, ) or Chagos Islands (formerly , and later the Oil Islands) is a group of seven atolls comprising more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean about south of the Maldives archipelago. This chain of islands is the southernmo ...

in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

Description

It is a 2 km (1.24 miles) long flat island with a maximum width of , covered with tall

coconut tree The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

s. Its name may derive from the lack of a safe anchorage, which rendered every visit to this island dangerous for the visiting ship and crew. A dangerous reef also extends about two to three miles south by west of the island, which at times the sea breaks on. The closest land is Sea Cow Island, the southernmost of the

Eagle Islands Eagle Islands is a group of two islands in the Chagos Archipelago. They are located on the central-western rim of the Great Chagos Bank, which is the world's largest coral atoll structure. Islands With a land area of 2.45 km, Île Aigle is t ...

which lies to the NNE.

History

Danger Island was sighted by the French ship in 1777. It was given its name by lieutenant Archibald Blair during his 1786 survey of the Chagos archipelago. Blair described the island at the time: "At dawn of day saw ''Breakers'' bearing NE, distant about ½ Mile, which I found at daylight to extend from ''Danger Island'' ..It is covered with thick Wood, and a few ''Coconut Trees'' near the Centre" mphasis in original There was never a permanent settlement on Danger Island, even at the time that the Chagos were inhabited (between the mid-18th and mid-20th centuries). However, occasionally plantation workers from other islands would be brought to this island to collect coconuts. Danger Island commemorative plaque

In 1975 there was an expedition to Danger Island by the Joint Services (JSDI). The expedition members were taken by RFA Resurgent to

and then by

ketch A ketch is a two- masted sailboat whose mainmast is taller than the mizzen mast (or aft-mast), and whose mizzen mast is stepped forward of the rudder post. The mizzen mast stepped forward of the rudder post is what distinguishes the ketch f ...

and inflatable craft to Danger Island and to Three Brothers. The expedition made a topographical survey of the coral reef, an ecological survey of the corals on it and a study on the metabolism of the reef. A reference collection of samples of the flora and fauna of the area was also undertaken. Following the Strict Nature Reserves Regulations issued on 18 September 1998, Danger Island, including its territorial waters and the reef surrounding, became a

Strict Nature Reserve A strict nature reserve (IUCN category Ia) or wilderness area (IUCN category Ib) is the highest category of protected area recognised by the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), a body which is part of the International Union for ...

. Danger Island has also been identified as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

. Birds for which the island is of conservation significance include red-footed boobies (3,500 breeding pairs) and brown noddies (11,000 pairs). The 2012 Chagos Trust expedition landed on the island with some difficulty: it was necessary to swim from an inflatable offshore, and due to the strong undertow, not all were able to land. Those who got ashore reported good tree cover including hardwood trees, especially Pisonia, and a healthy bird community. In the water they explored a shallow bank of seagrass, hoping, but without success, to find

dugong The dugong (; ''Dugong dugon'') is a marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest ...

s. The 2015 expedition visited the island, landing by the same method but with less difficulty, and reported red-footed and brown Boobys and two species of crab: ghost and sally lightfoot. They also reported turtle tracks and nest, and, in the water, good fish populations and some coral recovery following widespread coral death the previous year.

References

External links

Joint Services Expedition To Danger Island - (1975) commemorative postcardChagos research papers and books
Chagos Archipelago Nature reserves Uninhabited islands of the British Indian Ocean Territory Important Bird Areas of the British Indian Ocean Territory Seabird colonies {{BritishIndianOcean-geo-stub