Mont Panié is a mountain on the island of
Grande Terre in
New Caledonia, a
special collectivity of France located in the south-west
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
. At , it is the island's highest point. Mont Panié is situated in the Chaîne Centrale mountain range. The second highest peak on the island,
Mount Humboldt, is nearly as tall as Mont Panié, with an elevation of .
Environment
The eastern slopes of the mountain descend directly and steeply to the sea. On the western side are the upper valleys of the
Diahot and
Ulaeeum Rivers. Above 700 m the vegetation is dominated by
dayu biik forest; farther down, between 700 and 300 m, there is a transition zone characterised by
niaouli, followed by
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
s and anthropogenic areas. The mountain's forests are home to 13 species of
palm
Palm most commonly refers to:
* Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand
* Palm plants, of family Arecaceae
**List of Arecaceae genera
* Several other plants known as "palm"
Palm or Palms may also refer to:
Music
* Palm (ba ...
s, three of which are endemic to the massif.
[
]
Important Bird Area
The Panié massif has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of New Caledonian imperial pigeon
The goliath imperial pigeon (''Ducula goliath''), also known as the New Caledonian imperial pigeon and the notou, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to New Caledonia. Its natural habitat is humid forests. The Internatio ...
s, cloven-feathered dove
The cloven-feathered dove (''Drepanoptila holosericea'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Drepanoptila'', but this genus is possibly better merged into ''Ptilinopus''.Gibb, G.C., & D. Penny (2010). ...
s, white-bellied goshawks, horned parakeet
The horned parakeet (''Eunymphicus cornutus'') is a species of parrot in the genus '' Eunymphicus'', in the family Psittaculidae. It is a medium-sized parrot endemic to New Caledonia. It is called "horned" because it has two black feathers that ...
s, grey-eared honeyeater
The grey-eared honeyeater (''Lichmera incana''), also known as the dark-brown honeyeater, is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family which is found in Vanuatu and New Caledonia in the south-west Pacific. It is sometimes known as the silver-eare ...
s, crow honeyeaters, New Caledonian friarbirds, New Caledonian myzomela
The New Caledonian myzomela (''Myzomela caledonica'') is a species of bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The species is sometimes considered to be conspecific with (the same species as) the scarlet myzomela of Australia.
It is endemic ...
s, barred honeyeaters, fan-tailed gerygone
The fan-tailed gerygone (''Gerygone flavolateralis'') is a species of bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is found in New Caledonia and Vanuatu. The Rennell gerygone (''G. citrina'') of the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island ...
s, New Caledonian whistlers, South Melanesian cuckooshrike
The south Melanesian cuckooshrike (''Coracina caledonica'') is an uncommon species of bird in the cuckooshrike family.
It is found in New Caledonia, Bougainville Island, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. The species is a large (32–37 cm) c ...
s, New Caledonian cicadabirds, long-tailed triller
The long-tailed triller (''Lalage leucopyga'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found in New Caledonia, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. The Norfolk Island subspecies of the long-tailed triller, the Norfolk triller, has becom ...
s, streaked fantail
The streaked fantail (''Rhipidura verreauxi'') is a species of bird in the family Rhipiduridae. ''Rhipidura verreauxi'' has precedence over ''Rhipidura spilodera'' (Dickinson & Watling 2006). It is found in Fiji, New Caledonia, and Vanuatu. It ...
s, Melanesian flycatcher
The Melanesian flycatcher (''Myiagra caledonica'') is a species of bird in the monarch-flycatcher family Monarchidae. The species is found on islands in Melanesia.
Taxonomy and systematics
It is closely related to the Vanikoro flycatcher. Alte ...
s, southern shrikebill
The southern shrikebill (''Clytorhynchus pachycephaloides''), or brown flycatcher, is a songbird species in the family Monarchidae. It is found in New Caledonia and Vanuatu. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
S ...
s, New Caledonian crow
The New Caledonian crow (''Corvus moneduloides'') is a medium-sized member of the family Corvidae, native to New Caledonia. The bird is often referred to as the 'qua-qua' due to its distinctive call. It eats a wide range of food, including man ...
s, yellow-bellied robin
The yellow-bellied flyrobin (''Cryptomicroeca flaviventris'') is a species of passerine bird in the Australasian robin family Petroicidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Cryptomicroeca''. The yellow-bellied flyrobin is endemic to New Caled ...
s, New Caledonian thicketbirds, green-backed white-eyes, striated starling
The striated starling (''Aplonis striata'') is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is endemic to New Caledonia
)
, anthem = ""
, image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, map ...
s and red-throated parrotfinches. There is also a small breeding colony of Tahiti petrels.
See also
* List of Ultras of Oceania
* List of islands by highest point
This is a list of islands in the world ordered by their highest point; it lists islands with peaks by elevation. At the end of this article continental landmasses are also included for comparison.
Island countries and territories listed are tho ...
References
External links
"Mont Panié, New Caledonia" on Peakbagger
Panie
Important Bird Areas of New Caledonia
Seabird colonies
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