The Morant Cays is an offshore island group 51 km SSE off

Morant Point Morant Point in Saint Thomas Parish is the easternmost point of mainland Jamaica and the site of Morant Point Lighthouse. History It is called ''Cape Morante'' on several early maps including one dated 1572. It has had the name ''Morant Point'' ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. It is one of two offshore island groups belonging to Jamaica, the other one is the Pedro Cays. They are located at and consist of four small islets grouped closely together along the southeastern rim of Morant Bank a comparatively extensive crescent-shaped bank of

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

, over 7 km long, rising from 1000 m. The area of Morant Bank is about 100 km². The aggregate land area of the four cays is only 16.0

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...

s or 39.5

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

s. The Morant Cays are low-lying, mostly uninhabited, seasonally visited by fishermen, and fronted by highly exposed reefs over which the sea constantly breaks.

History

The cays were annexed in 1862 by the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and added to Jamaica in 1882.

Flora and fauna

The islands have sparse vegetation and are a seabird rookery and turtle nesting area. Seabird eggs and guano are collected periodically.

Islets

North-East Cay , at , is sometimes divided into three parts, the sea washing over the connecting sand spits. There is a fishermen's camp, established by the Jamaican Ministry of Agriculture, with several huts and a water tank on the south side of the cay. There is a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

at Breezy Point, the easternmost point of the cay and of Jamaica. North-West Cay South-East Cay, at , lies 1.9 km SSW of North-East Cay. Sand spits, which extend from its ends, alter in shape with the seasons of the year; in summer the SW spit is washed away and deposited on the W side of the cay. South-West Cay (South Cay), at , lies 1.6 km southwest of South-East Cay. A rocky ledge extending from the cay is used as a pier.

References

External links

Sailing Directions, Caribbean Sea, Vol. IGazetteer: Geographic Names of Jamaica
*{{cite web , url=http://islands.unep.ch/ISP.htm , publisher=

United Nations System-wide Earthwatch United Nations System-wide Earthwatch is an initiative set up by the United Nations to bring together environmental observations by UN agencies within a consistent framework. Formation and mandate Earthwatch was established in 1972 to "monitor m ...

, title=Island Directory Islands of Jamaica Seabird colonies Geography of Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica