Pointes et plages de Saziley et Charifou (Points and beaches of Salizey and Charifou) is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

Mayotte Mayotte (; french: Mayotte, ; Shimaore: ''Maore'', ; Kibushi: ''Maori'', ), officially the Department of Mayotte (french: Département de Mayotte), is an overseas department and region and single territorial collectivity of France. It is loc ...

, a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

island territory in the Comoro archipelago of the western

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

. It was established in 1997.

Description

The protected area includes Point Saziley, the south-easternmost headland of the island, and adjacent areas. Point Saziley is 4 km long with a sharp ridge rising to 233 m and is vegetated with dry

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...

and thicket containing

baobabs ''Adansonia'' is a genus made up of eight species of medium-to-large deciduous trees known as baobabs ( or ). They are placed in the Malvaceae family, subfamily Bombacoideae. They are native to Madagascar, mainland Africa, and Australia.Tropi ...

(''Adansonia digitata''). The protected area also includes the beaches and mangroves of Dapani and Charifou west of Point Salizey. The adjacent sea is part of

Mayotte Marine Natural Park The Mayotte Marine Natural Park () is a marine park surrounding Mayotte, a French overseas region. Mayotte is part of the Comoro Islands archipelago, which lies within the Mozambique Channel in the western Indian Ocean. Established in 2010, the p ...

Wildlife

The area supports populations of

Comoros olive pigeon The Comoros olive pigeon (''Columba pollenii''), also known as the Comoro olive pigeon, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in Comoros and Mayotte. It is becoming rare due to habitat loss. Description Easily distinguishab ...

(''Columba pollenii''),

Comoros blue pigeon The Comoros blue pigeon (''Alectroenas sganzini'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Comoros and the coralline Seychelles. It is rated as a species of near threatened on the International Union fo ...

(''Alectroenas sganzini''),

Mayotte white-eye The Mayotte white-eye or chestnut-sided white-eye (''Zosterops mayottensis'') is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is now found only on Mayotte in the Comoro Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, su ...

(''Zosterops mayottensis''),

Mayotte sunbird The Mayotte sunbird (''Cinnyris coquerellii'') is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is endemic to Mayotte and surrounding islets in the southeastern Comoros. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. R ...

(''Cinnyris coquerellii'') and red-headed fody (''Foudia eminentissima''). It is also home to

Robert Mertens's day gecko Robert Mertens's day gecko (''Phelsuma robertmertensi'') is diurnal species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to the Comoros. Etymology The specific name, ''robertmertensi'', is in honour of German herpetologist Robert ...

s (''Phelsuma robertmertensi''),

island day gecko The Island day gecko (''Phelsuma nigristriata'') is a species of gecko. Distribution ''Phelsuma nigristriata'' is endemic to Mayotte. Description It is a diurnal and arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the Animal locomotion, locomotion of an ...

s (''Phelsuma nigristriata'') and

Pasteur's day gecko Pasteur's day gecko (''Phelsuma v-nigra pasteuri'' ; synonym, ''Phelsuma pasteuri'' ) is a small diurnal subspecies of gecko. It lives in the Comoros and typically inhabits trees and bushes. Pasteur's day gecko feeds on insects and nectar. Etym ...

s (''Phelsuma v-nigra pasteuri''). Its beaches are a nesting site for

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

, and probably hawksbill,

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhead, ...

s. Together with Mont Choungui to the west, it forms the 1600 ha Mlima Choungui and Sazilé or Crêtes du Sud

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), as identified as such 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 ...

References

Protected areas of Mayotte Important Bird Areas of Mayotte 1997 establishments in Mayotte {{Mayotte-stub