New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
in the
Bismarck Archipelago, part of the
Islands Region of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
. It is separated from
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
by a northwest corner of the
Solomon Sea
The Solomon Sea is a sea located within the Pacific Ocean. It lies between Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. Many major battles were fought there during World War II.
Extent
The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of ...
(or with an island hop of
Umboi the
Dampier and
Vitiaz Strait
Vitiaz Strait is a strait between New Britain and the Huon Peninsula, northern New Guinea.
The Vitiaz Strait was so named by Nicholai Nicholaievich Mikluho-Maklai to commemorate the Russian corvette '' Vitiaz'' in which he sailed from Octobe ...
s) and from
New Ireland by
St. George's Channel. The main towns of New Britain are
Rabaul/
Kokopo
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo-Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of ...
and
Kimbe
Kimbe is the capital of the province of West New Britain in Papua New Guinea, and the largest settlement on the island. The bustling town of Kimbe is the third largest port in Papua New Guinea and is the fastest growing city in the South Pacific. T ...
. The island is roughly the size of
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
. While the island was part of
German New Guinea
German New Guinea (german: Deutsch-Neu-Guinea) consisted of the northeastern part of the island of New Guinea and several nearby island groups and was the first part of the German colonial empire. The mainland part of the territory, called , ...
, it was named Neupommern ("New
Pomerania
Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...
").
In common with most of the Bismarcks it was largely formed by volcanic processes, and has active volcanoes including
Ulawun
Ulawun is a basaltic and andesitic stratovolcano in West New Britain Province, on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea.
About southwest of the township of Rabaul, Ulawun is the highest mountain in New Britain and the second in the ...
(highest volcano nationally),
Langila
Langila is one of the most active volcanoes of New Britain, Papua New Guinea. It consists of four overlapping volcanic cones on the eastern flank of an older extinct volcano, Talawe. Talawe is the largest volcano in Cape Gloucester. There have ...
, the
Garbuna Group
The Garbuna Group of volcanoes consists of three volcanic peaks, Krummel, Garbuna, and Welcker, atop a shield volcano. They are located at the southern end of the Willaumez Peninsula, just to the west of the town of Kimbe, in West New Britain, Pap ...
, the
Sulu Range
The Sulu Range is a small volcanic mountain range on the Papua New Guinean island of New Britain. It consists of a group of partially overlapping small stratovolcanoes and lava domes, with the highest point being Mount Malopu at the southwestern ...
, and the volcanoes
Tavurvur
Tavurvur is an active stratovolcano near Rabaul, on the island of New Britain, in Papua New Guinea. It is a sub-vent of the Rabaul caldera and lies on the eastern rim of the larger feature. An eruption of the volcano largely destroyed the nearby ...
and
Vulcan
Vulcan may refer to:
Mythology
* Vulcan (mythology), the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, and the forge in Roman mythology
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* Vulcan (''Star Trek''), name of a fictional race and their home p ...
of the
Rabaul caldera
The Rabaul caldera, or Rabaul Volcano, is a large volcano on the tip of the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea, and derives its name from the town of Rabaul inside the caldera. The caldera has many sub-vents, Tavurvur being t ...
. A major eruption of Tavurvur in 1994 destroyed the
East New Britain
East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea, consisting of the north-eastern part of the island of New Britain and the Duke of York Islands. The capital of the province is Kokopo, not far from the old capital of Rabaul, which was largely de ...
provincial capital of
Rabaul. Most of the town still lies under metres of ash, and the capital has been moved to nearby
Kokopo
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo-Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of ...
.
Geography
![Bamus, Ulawun, and Lolobau from space](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Bamus%2C_Ulawun%2C_and_Lolobau_from_space.jpg)
New Britain extends from 148°18'31" to 152°23'57" E longitude and from 4°08'25" to 6°18'31" S latitude. It is crescent-shaped, approximately along its southeastern coastline, and from 29 to 146 km (18–91 miles) wide, not including a small central peninsula. The air-line distance from west to east is . The island is the
38th largest in the world, with an area of .
Steep cliffs form some sections of the coastline; in others the mountains are further inland, and the coastal area is flat and bordered by coral reefs. The highest point, at , is the
stratovolcano Mount Ulawun in the east. Most of the terrain is covered with tropical rainforest and several large rivers are fed by the high rainfall.
New Britain was largely formed by volcanic processes, and has active volcanoes including
Ulawun
Ulawun is a basaltic and andesitic stratovolcano in West New Britain Province, on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea.
About southwest of the township of Rabaul, Ulawun is the highest mountain in New Britain and the second in the ...
(highest volcano nationally),
Langila
Langila is one of the most active volcanoes of New Britain, Papua New Guinea. It consists of four overlapping volcanic cones on the eastern flank of an older extinct volcano, Talawe. Talawe is the largest volcano in Cape Gloucester. There have ...
, the
Garbuna Group
The Garbuna Group of volcanoes consists of three volcanic peaks, Krummel, Garbuna, and Welcker, atop a shield volcano. They are located at the southern end of the Willaumez Peninsula, just to the west of the town of Kimbe, in West New Britain, Pap ...
, the
Sulu Range
The Sulu Range is a small volcanic mountain range on the Papua New Guinean island of New Britain. It consists of a group of partially overlapping small stratovolcanoes and lava domes, with the highest point being Mount Malopu at the southwestern ...
, and the volcanoes
Tavurvur
Tavurvur is an active stratovolcano near Rabaul, on the island of New Britain, in Papua New Guinea. It is a sub-vent of the Rabaul caldera and lies on the eastern rim of the larger feature. An eruption of the volcano largely destroyed the nearby ...
and
Vulcan
Vulcan may refer to:
Mythology
* Vulcan (mythology), the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, and the forge in Roman mythology
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* Vulcan (''Star Trek''), name of a fictional race and their home p ...
of the
Rabaul caldera
The Rabaul caldera, or Rabaul Volcano, is a large volcano on the tip of the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea, and derives its name from the town of Rabaul inside the caldera. The caldera has many sub-vents, Tavurvur being t ...
. A major eruption of Tavurvur in 1994 destroyed the
East New Britain
East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea, consisting of the north-eastern part of the island of New Britain and the Duke of York Islands. The capital of the province is Kokopo, not far from the old capital of Rabaul, which was largely de ...
provincial capital of
Rabaul. Most of the town still lies under metres of ash, and the capital has been moved to nearby
Kokopo
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo-Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of ...
.
Administrative divisions
New Britain forms part of the
Islands Region, one of four
regions of Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea is divided into four regions, which are its broadest administrative divisions of Papua New Guinea. While the 22 provincial-level divisions are the primary administrative divisions of PNG, the regions are quite significant in da ...
. It comprises the mainland of two
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
s:
*
East New Britain
East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea, consisting of the north-eastern part of the island of New Britain and the Duke of York Islands. The capital of the province is Kokopo, not far from the old capital of Rabaul, which was largely de ...
with headquarters in
Kokopo
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo-Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of ...
(formerly Rabaul)
*
West New Britain
West New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea on the islands of New Britain. The provincial capital is Kimbe. The area of the province is 20,387 km² with a population of 264,264 as of the 2011 census. The province's only land border is ...
with headquarters in
Kimbe
Kimbe is the capital of the province of West New Britain in Papua New Guinea, and the largest settlement on the island. The bustling town of Kimbe is the third largest port in Papua New Guinea and is the fastest growing city in the South Pacific. T ...
History
In research science, there is evidence with Pleistocene-era cultural deposits discovered in open-site excavations in near
Yombon, which show that New Britain has been inhabited by indigenous Papuans for thousands of years, with human occupation dating back to 21,000 BC.
Modern history
Before 1700
First noted in Europe by the explorer Sir Harper Matthew. Claimed by the Crown of England.
1700–1914
William Dampier
William Dampier (baptised 5 September 1651; died March 1715) was an English explorer, pirate, privateer, navigator, and naturalist who became the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia, and the first person to circumnav ...
became the first known British man to visit New Britain on 27 February 1700; he dubbed the island with the Latin name ''Nova Britannia'' (Eng: ''New
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
'').
Whaling ships from Britain, Australia and America called at the island in the 19th century for food, water and wood. The first on record was the ''Roscoe'' in 1822. The last known whaling visitor was the ''Palmetto'' in 1881.
In November 1884, Germany proclaimed its
protectorate
A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...
over the New Britain Archipelago; the German colonial administration gave New Britain and
New Ireland the names of Neupommern (or Neu-Pommern; "New
Pomerania
Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...
") and
Neumecklenburg (or Neu-Mecklenburg; "New
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg (; nds, label= Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schweri ...
") respectively, and the whole island group was renamed the Bismarck Archipelago. New Britain became part of
German New Guinea
German New Guinea (german: Deutsch-Neu-Guinea) consisted of the northeastern part of the island of New Guinea and several nearby island groups and was the first part of the German colonial empire. The mainland part of the territory, called , ...
.
In 1909, the
indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
population was estimated at 190,000; the foreign population at 773 (474 white). The expatriate population was practically confined to the northeastern
Gazelle Peninsula
The Gazelle Peninsula is a large peninsula in northeastern East New Britain, Papua New Guinea located on the island of New Britain within the Bismarck Archipelago, situated in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.
The Rabaul caldera is located on t ...
, which included the capital,
Herbertshöhe (now Kokopo). At the time 5,448 hectares (13,464 acres) had been converted to plantations, primarily growing
copra
Copra (from ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted from co ...
, cotton, coffee and rubber. Westerners avoided exploring the interior initially, believing that the indigenous peoples were warlike and would fiercely resist intrusions.
World War I
On 11 September 1914, New Britain became the site of one of the
earliest battles of World War I when the
Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force landed on the island. They quickly overwhelmed the German forces and occupied the island for the duration of the war.
Between the world wars
After
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
was signed in June 1919. Germany was stripped of all its possessions outside Europe. In 1920 the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
included New Britain, along with the former German colony on New Guinea, in the
Territory of New Guinea
The Territory of New Guinea was an Australian-administered United Nations trust territory on the island of New Guinea from 1914 until 1975. In 1949, the Territory and the Territory of Papua were established in an administrative union by the na ...
, a mandated territory of Australia.
World War II
![Native New British Islanders 1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Native_New_British_Islanders_1944.jpg)
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
the
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
attacked New Britain soon after the outbreak of hostilities in the Pacific Ocean. Strategic bases at
Rabaul and
Kavieng
Kavieng is the capital of the Papua New Guinean province of New Ireland and the largest town on the island of the same name. The town is located at Balgai Bay, on the northern tip of the island. As of 2009, it had a population of 17,248.
Kavi ...
(
New Ireland) were defended by a small Australian detachment,
Lark Force
Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...
. During January 1942, the Japanese heavily bombed
Rabaul. On 23 January,
Japanese marines landed by the thousands, starting the
Battle of Rabaul. Two hundred and fifty civilians were evacuated from places on New Britain in March 1942,
but others were captured in Rabaul when it fell. The Japanese used Rabaul as a key base until 1944; it served as the key point for the failed invasion of
Port Moresby
(; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
on
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
(May to November 1942).
![Japanese flags are displayed by the weary Marines](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b5/Japanese_flags_are_displayed_by_the_weary_Marines.jpg)
New Britain was invaded by the
U.S. 1st Marine Division
The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine (military), Marine Division (military), division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine E ...
in the
Cape Gloucester area of the very western end of the island, and also by
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
soldiers at some other coastal points. As for Cape Gloucester, with its swamps and mosquitos, the Marines said that it was "worse than
Guadalcanal". They captured an airfield but accomplished little toward reducing the Japanese base at Rabaul.
The
Allied plan involved bypassing Rabaul by surrounding it with air and naval bases on surrounding islands and on New Britain itself. The adjacent island of
New Ireland was bypassed altogether. Much of the story from the Japanese side, especially the two suicide charges by the Baalen group, are retold in
Shigeru Mizuki
was a Japanese manga artist and historian, best known for his manga series ''GeGeGe no Kitarō''. Born in a hospital in Osaka and raised in the city of Sakaiminato, Tottori, he later moved to Chōfu, Tokyo where he remained until his death ...
's ''
Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths
is a one-shot manga written and illustrated by Shigeru Mizuki. In it, Mizuki describes his experiences as a soldier participating in the New Guinea campaign during World War II. He portrays the final weeks of his infantry service as the soldi ...
''. The factual telemovie ''
Sisters of War
''Sisters of War'' is a telemovie based on the true story of two Australian women, Lorna Whyte, an army nurse and Sister Berenice Twohill, a Catholic nun from New South Wales who survived as prisoners of war in Papua New Guinea during World War ...
'' recounts experiences of
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), wh ...
nurses and Catholic nuns during the conflict.
After 1945
![Rabaul](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Rabaul.jpg)
The population of the main town of Rabaul was evacuated as a result of volcanic activity in 1994 which buried the town under a thick layer of volcanic ash.
People and culture
The indigenous people of New Britain fall into two main groups: the
Papuans
The indigenous peoples of West Papua in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, commonly called Papuans, are Melanesians. There is genetic evidence for two major historical lineages in New Guinea and neighboring islands: a first wave from the Malay Arch ...
, who have inhabited the island for tens of thousands of years, and the
Austronesians
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austrone ...
, who arrived around three thousand years ago. There are around ten Papuan languages spoken and about forty Austronesian languages, as well as
Tok Pisin
Tok Pisin (,Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh ; Tok Pisin ), often referred to by English speakers as "New Guinea Pidgin" or simply Pidgin, is a creole language spoken throughout Papua New Guinea. It is an ...
and English. The Papuan population is largely confined to the eastern third of the island and a couple of small enclaves in the central highlands. At
Jacquinot Bay
Jacquinot Bay is a bay in East New Britain Province, south-eastern New Britain, Papua New Guinea, at . It is near the mountain where twenty-eight people died when a Royal Australian Air Force plane crashed in November 1945. To its west is the Gas ...
, in the south-east, they live beside the beach where a waterfall crashes directly into the sea.
![Die Gartenlaube (1882) b 697](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Die_Gartenlaube_%281882%29_b_697.jpg)
The population of New Britain was 493,585 in 2010. Austronesian people make up the majority on the island. The major towns are
Rabaul/
Kokopo
Kokopo is the capital of East New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea. It is administered under Kokopo-Vunamami Urban LLG. The capital was moved from Rabaul in 1994 when the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted. As a result, the population of ...
in
East New Britain
East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea, consisting of the north-eastern part of the island of New Britain and the Duke of York Islands. The capital of the province is Kokopo, not far from the old capital of Rabaul, which was largely de ...
and
Kimbe
Kimbe is the capital of the province of West New Britain in Papua New Guinea, and the largest settlement on the island. The bustling town of Kimbe is the third largest port in Papua New Guinea and is the fastest growing city in the South Pacific. T ...
in
West New Britain
West New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea on the islands of New Britain. The provincial capital is Kimbe. The area of the province is 20,387 km² with a population of 264,264 as of the 2011 census. The province's only land border is ...
.
New Britain hosts diverse and complex traditional cultures. While the
Tolai of the Rabaul area of East New Britain have a
matrilineal
Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance ...
society, other groups are
patrilineal
Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...
in structure. There are numerous traditions which remain active today, such as the ''
dukduk'' secret society (also known as ''tubuan'') in the Tolai area.
Languages
Non-
Austronesian (
Papuan) languages spoken on New Britain:
*
Taulil–Butam languages:
Taulil,
Butam (extinct) (originally from
New Ireland)
*''
Sulka'' (originally from
New Ireland)
*
Baining languages
The Baining languages are a small language family spoken by the Baining people on the Gazelle Peninsula of New Britain in Papua New Guinea. They appear to be related to the neighboring Taulil–Butam languages, which immigrated from New Irela ...
:
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...
,
Kaket,
Kairak,
Simbali,
Ura
*''
Kol''
*''
Makolkol''
*''
Anêm''
*''
Ata''
The last two are spoken in
West New Britain
West New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea on the islands of New Britain. The provincial capital is Kimbe. The area of the province is 20,387 km² with a population of 264,264 as of the 2011 census. The province's only land border is ...
, and the rest in
East New Britain
East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea, consisting of the north-eastern part of the island of New Britain and the Duke of York Islands. The capital of the province is Kokopo, not far from the old capital of Rabaul, which was largely de ...
.
Ecology
The island is part of two
ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...
s. The
New Britain-New Ireland lowland rain forests extend from sea level to 1000 meters elevation. The
New Britain-New Ireland montane rain forests cover the mountains of New Britain above 1000 meters elevation.
Forests on New Britain have been rapidly destroyed in recent years, largely to clear land for
oil palm
''Elaeis'' () is a genus of palms containing two species, called oil palms. They are used in commercial agriculture in the production of palm oil. The African oil palm '' Elaeis guineensis'' (the species name ''guineensis'' referring to its c ...
plantations.
Lowland
rainforest has been hardest hit, with nearly a quarter of the forest below 100 m disappearing between 1989 and 2000. If those rates of
deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated ...
continue, it is estimated that all forest below 200 m will be cleared by 2060. Despite this, most forest birds on New Britain are still widespread and secure in conservation status though some forest-dependent species such as the
New Britain Kingfisher are considered to be at risk of extinction if current trends continue.
See also
*
Postage stamps of New Britain
*
Cape Hollman
References and sources
References
Sources
*
*
External links
Nationsonline.org: Solomon IslandsEthnologue.com: Map of languages of New Britain* Australian War Memorial
Operations against German Pacific territories— ''(6 August−6 November 1914)''.
{{coord, 5, 44, S, 150, 44, E, type:isle_scale:2500000, display=title
Islands of Papua New Guinea
Islands Region (Papua New Guinea)
Islands of New Britain
Bismarck Archipelago