Jaco Island ( pt, Ilha de Jaco, tet, Illa Jako,

Fataluku Fataluku (also known as Dagaga, Dagoda', Dagada) is a Papuan language spoken by approximately 37,000 people of Fataluku ethnicity in the eastern areas of East Timor, especially around Lospalos. It is a member of the Timor-Alor-Pantar language fa ...

: or ) is an uninhabited island in

East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...

, a country occupying the eastern end of the island of

Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...

in the Lesser Sunda Islands in Southeast Asia. It lies within the

Nino Konis Santana National Park The Nino Konis Santana National Park is East Timor's first national park. The park, established on 15 August 2007, covers . It links important bird areas such as Lore, Mount Paitchau, Lake Ira Lalaro, and Jaco Island. The park also includes o ...

Overview

Jaco Island lies just off the eastern end of the island of Timor, part of the

Tutuala Tutuala is a village and suco in the subdistrict of Tutuala ( Lautém District, East Timor). It is situated at the extreme eastern end of Timor. Its population at the 2004 census was 3,707. The subdistrict of Tutuala comprises two sucos, inc ...

subdistrict in

Lautém District Lautém (Tetum: Lautein) is a toponym for a place eastmost in East Timor. It may refer to, from small to large: * Lautém (city) * Lautém Administrative Post * Lautém Municipality Lautém ( pt, Município Lautém, ) is one of the municipa ...

, and is separated from the mainland in front of

Valu Beach Valu Beach ( Fataluku: , tet, Tasi-ibun Valu, pt, Praia Valu) is a public beach at the easternmost tip of mainland East Timor, and the gateway to Jaco Island to its east. Geography The beach is located in the '' suco'' of Tutuala, Lautém ...

by a channel or strait (known as Jaco Strait) navigable by small vessels. The island, the beach and the channel are sometimes said to be the points where Timor meets the boundary between the

Banda Sea The Banda Sea ( id, Laut Banda, pt, Mar de Banda, tet, Tasi Banda) is one of four seas that surround the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, connected to the Pacific Ocean, but surrounded by hundreds of islands, including Timor, as well as the Halma ...

(including

Wetar Strait Wetar Strait ( id, Selat Wetar, pt, Estreito de Wetar, tet, Estreitu Wetar) is an international strait in Southeast Asia. It separates the island of Wetar from the eastern part of the island of Timor. The strait is also the eastern portion ...

) to the north and

Timor Sea The Timor Sea ( id, Laut Timor, pt, Mar de Timor, tet, Tasi Mane or ) is a relatively shallow sea bounded to the north by the island of Timor, to the east by the Arafura Sea, and to the south by Australia. The sea contains a number of reefs ...

to the south. According to the standard work ''Limits of Oceans and Seas'', 3rd edition (1953), published by the

International Hydrographic Organization The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is an intergovernmental organisation representing hydrography. , the IHO comprised 98 Member States. A principal aim of the IHO is to ensure that the world's seas, oceans and navigable waters a ...

(IHO), however, the only point where Timor meets those two seas is Tanjong Sewirawa (now known as Cape Cutcha), the eastern extremity of the Timorese mainland. Cape Cutcha is a short distance northwest of the island, and north of the beach. The island is low-lying, with an area of and a maximum elevation of about . It is covered mainly by

tropical dry forest The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive ...

, fringed by strand vegetation and sandy beaches. There are some low cliffs on the southern coast.

Climate

The average annual temperature is roughly . On average the island receives of rain and the north and east coast of the small island is somewhat drier.

Wildlife

The island supports populations of bar-necked cuckoo-doves,

black cuckoo-dove The black cuckoo-dove (''Turacoena modesta''), also known as the slaty cuckoo-dove, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Lesser Sunda Islands, being found on Timor, Wetar, Rote, and Atauro. It inhabits primary a ...

pink-headed imperial pigeon The pink-headed imperial pigeon (''Ducula rosacea'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae found in the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical ma ...

s, streak-breasted honeyeaters, fawn-breasted whistlers,

blue-cheeked flowerpecker The blue-cheeked flowerpecker or red-chested flowerpecker (''Dicaeum maugei'') is a species of bird in the family Dicaeidae. It is found on the Lesser Sundas (namely Timor island). Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland f ...

flame-breasted sunbird The flame-breasted sunbird (''Cinnyris solaris'') is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found on Timor and other islands, primarily in the Indonesian province of Nusa Tenggara Timur. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropica ...

s and

Timor sparrow The Timor sparrow (''Padda fuscata''), also known as Timor dusky sparrow, is a small, approximately 14 cm long, plump dark brown songbird with a large silvery-blue bill, white cheek, pink feet and creamy-white belly. Both sexes are similar. ...

s. The Javan rusa native deer can also be found on the island and unlike mainland deer, they have become accustomed to drinking salt water due to the lack of freshwater on the island. Jaco is listed by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area.

References

External links

{{Authority control Islands of East Timor National parks of East Timor Uninhabited islands Lautém Municipality Important Bird Areas of East Timor

Overview

Climate

Wildlife

See also

References

External links