Malo (formerly known as ''St. Bartholomew'') is an island in

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of ...

off the southern coast of Vanuatu's largest island, Espiritu Santo, in Sanma Province. It has a circumference of and an area of . It is long, and wide. The highest point on the island is Mount Malo (). The climate is perhumid tropical. The average annual amount of rainfall is roughly . The island is frequently subjected to cyclones and earthquakes.

Geography

Like most of the islands of

, Malo is of volcanic origin. The highest point on the island is Malo Peak, which rises to above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...

. The main products of the island are

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 ...

and

cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter an ...

. Both crops are grown on plantations.

Natural history

A tract, encompassing the western end of the island, has been recognised 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 Inte ...

(IBA) by

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 ...

, because it supports populations of

Vanuatu megapode The Vanuatu megapode or Vanuatu scrubfowl (''Megapodius layardi'') is a species of bird in the family Megapodiidae. It was formerly known as the New Hebrides scrubfowl. It is found only in Vanuatu. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical ...

s, Vanuatu kingfishers,

palm lorikeet The palm lorikeet (''Vini palmarum'') is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is found in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane ...

s, fan-tailed gerygones, and Vanuatu white-eyes.

Demographics

In 1979, the island had a population of 2,312. The 1999 census found a population of 3,532. By the 2009 census, the total population had grown to 4,273, an increase of 21% since 1999. Avunatari (Abnetare), the main center on the northwest coast, had 600 people in 1999. There are two main cultural groups on the island of Malo, the cultural group of Auta that inhabits the western part of the island as well as the cultural group of Tinjivo that inhabits the eastern portion of the island. Both these cultural group speak a variant of the Tamambo language. Malo is also the name of the Austronesian language spoken on the island. The earliest archaeological evidence of human habitation in Vanuatu is from a site on Malo that was settled circa 1400 BC. Artifacts from this early settlement are characteristic of the

Lapita culture The Lapita culture is the name given to a Neolithic Austronesian people and their material culture, who settled Island Melanesia via a seaborne migration at around 1600 to 500 BCE. They are believed to have originated from the northern Philipp ...

References

Islands of Vanuatu Sanma Province Important Bird Areas of Vanuatu {{Vanuatu-geo-stub