Oeno Island ( ) or Holiday Island a

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 ...

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...

in the South Pacific Ocean, part of the

Pitcairn Islands The Pitcairn Islands (; Pitkern: '), officially the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, is a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four isl ...

overseas territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

Geography

Located northwest of

Pitcairn Island Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited island of the Pitcairn Islands, of which many inhabitants are descendants of mutineers of HMS ''Bounty''. Geography The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other ...

, at . Oeno Atoll measures about in diameter, including the central lagoon, with a total area exceeding . There are two larger and three smaller islets on or within the rim of the atoll. Their aggregate land area is only . Oeno serves as a private holiday site for the few residents of Pitcairn Island, who travel there and stay for two weeks in January because Oeno has beaches while Pitcairn doesn't. The main island (Oeno Island), about in area, has forest and scrub with pandanus and palm trees. It is located in the southwest part of the atoll's lagoon. There is a water tap installed on the island. The maximum elevation is less than . Sandy Island (or Islands) is to the northeast, within the lagoon, and may be an

ephemeral Ephemerality (from the Greek word , meaning 'lasting only one day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Academically, the term ephemeral constitutionally describes a diverse assortment of things and experiences, fr ...

island. Three smaller islets are to the south and west of the main island.

Important Bird Area

The island has been identified 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 ...

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 Int ...

(IBA) principally for its colony of

Murphy's petrel Murphy's petrel (''Pterodroma ultima'') is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is 15 inches in length, with a 35-inch wingspan and weigh about 13 ounces. It was described by Robert Cushman Murphy in 1949, which is th ...

s, which, at some 12,500 pairs, is estimated to be the second largest colony of these birds in the world.

Maps

File:Oeno Atoll Island Map.jpg, Map of Oeno Island File:PN -A.png, Map of Pitcairn Islands

History

* January 1819: Captain James Henderson of the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

ship ''Hercules'' sights Oeno Island *1822–1823 Captain Ralph Bond in sealing brig ''Martha'' of London saw this island, presumably in the summer/autumn of 1822. * 26 January 1824: Captain George Worth aboard the American whaler '' Oeno'' names the atoll after his ship * 5 March 1858: The ''Wild Wave'', a 1500-ton

clipper ship A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. Clippers were generally narrow for their length, small by later 19th century standards, could carry limited bulk freight, and had a large total sail area. "Cl ...

sailing from San Francisco, is wrecked on Oeno's reef * 1875: The ''Khandeish'' is wrecked on Oeno * 23 August 1883: The ''Oregon'' is wrecked on Oeno * April 1893: The ''Bowdon'' is wrecked on Oeno * 10 July 1902: Oeno annexed 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 ...

* 1938: Incorporated into the

colony * 1997:

Polynesian rat The Polynesian rat, Pacific rat or little rat (''Rattus exulans''), known to the Māori as ''kiore'', is the third most widespread species of rat in the world behind the brown rat and black rat. The Polynesian rat originated in Southeast Asia, a ...

s exterminated * 2 July 2019: Oeno Island experienced a

total solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of the Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs during an eclipse season, approximately every six month ...

References

External links

Oeno Photo Tour
– Pitcairners spending holidays on the island
Island Evolution: Oeno Island
from ''

NASA Earth Observatory NASA Earth Observatory is an online publishing outlet for NASA which was created in 1999. It is the principal source of satellite imagery and other scientific information pertaining to the climate and the Environment (biophysical), environment whi ...