The Prickly Pear Cays, sometimes spelt as Prickley Pear Cays, are a small pair of uninhabited islands about six miles from Road Bay,

Anguilla Anguilla ( ) is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin. The terr ...

, in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean. They are divided by a narrow boat channel between Prickly Pear East and Prickly Pear West. Prickly Pear Cays were classified as 'wildlands' by the "Eastern Caribbean Natural Area Management Programme" (ECNAMP). In addition, Prickly Pear Cays are one of six

marine protected area Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a conse ...

s of Anguilla.

Geography

Along with

Dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

, Scrub, Little Scrub,

Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...

, and Sombrero islets, the Prickly Pear Cays are located on the drowned Anguilla Bank. The cays are characterized by

Early Miocene The Early Miocene (also known as Lower Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages: the Aquitanian age, Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages. The sub-epoch lasted from 23.03 ± 0.05 annum, Ma to ...

reefal limestone positioned upon Eocene-Oligocene volcanic rocks. These form a section of the active volcanic arc of the Lesser Antilles. The two cays are located close to each other at . They are accessible from Road Bay, Anguilla ( to its north) and Saint Martin either by catamaran or

sail boat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

. West Cay is longer than East Cay. North Cay, a rock outcrop, is situated north of East Cay. There is also a rock outcrop between Prickly Pear Cays and another cay known as Bush Cay, which is separated by a waterway. Another rocky protrusion, known as

Flirt Rocks Flirt Rocks are two small, uninhabited, rocky islets off of Anguilla, in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean. They are located north of the Prickly Pear Cays. Seal Reef is situated east of the Flirt Rocks. The islets consist of the Great and L ...

, is situated north of Prickly Pear Cays. Dog Island Channel separates Dog Island from the Prickly Pear Cays. West Cay is narrow, about long and rugged. Its western bay is covered with brush which rises to a height of . With rocky coral reefs, it has no easy boat landing facility. East Cay is about long and wide. It has sparse vegetation and a sandy shoreline. The east cay also has salt ponds. Prickly Pear Cays have been designated as a marine park with permanent moorings. There is total ban on coral extraction or shells from underwater and spear fishing is not allowed. The sea is generally calm. Prickly Pear Reef is an underwater canyon with ledges and caves whose depth varies from to and includes an underwater, chimney-like formation.

Geology

The geological formation in both the cays is of laminated calcareous sandstone. The layered stratigraphic formation is inferred to be due to "successive deposits by the tides or overflows from a troubled sea." Over a long period of exposure, these formations have developed a laminated condition with the lamination beds of to thickness. The strata are disturbed in several sections. They have been assessed as suitable for use in pavements in view of their compact formation. At West Cay, an old quarry near a good harbour was used for exporting sandstone slabs.

Flora and fauna

Along with certain sections of mainland Anguilla, Prickly Pear Cays were classified as 'wildlands' by ECNAMP in 1980. Many types of plants, birds and reptiles have been recorded in both the cays. Uncontrolled grazing by livestock is permitted in all the vegetation areas.

Plants

Both cays are covered by shrubland. The vegetation is dictated by the thin soil mantle and the presence of limestone cavities. Prickly pear, pope's head cactus and sea grape are the dominant plants. Other common plants are mauby bark, milky thorn,

lignum vitae Lignum vitae () is a wood, also called guayacan or guaiacum, and in parts of Europe known as Pockholz or pokhout, from trees of the genus ''Guaiacum''. The trees are indigenous to the Caribbean and the northern coast of South America (e.g: Col ...

, sage cop, loblolly, nicker tree (only on Prickly Pear East), cockspur and balsam bush.

Animals

Nesting birds are a common sight along the rocky coast line. The two cays have been identified as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International because of their breeding

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...

s. These include

red-billed tropicbird The red-billed tropicbird (''Phaethon aethereus'') is a tropicbird, one of three closely related species of seabird of tropical oceans. Superficially resembling a tern in appearance, it has mostly white plumage with some black markings on the wi ...

brown pelican The brown pelican (''Pelecanus occidentalis'') is a bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae, one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mout ...

brown boobies The brown booby (''Sula leucogaster'') is a large seabird of the booby family Sulidae, of which it is perhaps the most common and widespread species. It has a pantropical range, which overlaps with that of other booby species. The gregarious brow ...

laughing gull The laughing gull (''Leucophaeus atricilla'') is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. Named for its laugh-like call, it is an opportunistic omnivore and scavenger. It breeds in large colonies mostly along the Atlantic coast of North Am ...

s and

least tern The least tern (''Sternula antillarum'') is a species of tern that breeds in North America and locally in northern South America. It is closely related to, and was formerly often considered conspecific with, the little tern of the Old World. Ot ...

s. Brown noddies and bridled terns also occur. Resident landbirds include Caribbean elaenias and

yellow warbler The yellow warbler (''Setophaga petechia'') is a New World warbler species. Yellow warblers are the most widespread species in the diverse genus ''Setophaga'', breeding in almost the whole of North America, the Caribbean, and down to northern S ...

s. Numerous reptile species, such as Anguilla Bank anole and Anguilla Bank ameiva (on East Cay), are seen.

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, loggerhe ...

s also frequent the shores of the cays. Marine fauna in the reef area include schooling

goatfish The goatfishes are perciform fish of the family Mullidae. The family is also sometimes referred to as the red mullets, which also refers more narrowly to the genus '' Mullus''. The family name and the English common name mullet derived from La ...

, crabs, lobsters,

barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...

, angelfish,

grouper Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Not all serranids are called "groupers"; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name "grouper" is ...

squirrelfish Holocentrinae is a subfamily of Holocentridae containing 40 recognized species and one proposed species. Its members are typically known as squirrelfish and all are nocturnal. All three genera in the subfamily are found in the Atlantic and ''Ho ...

, butterflyfish,

tarpon Tarpons are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Species a ...

mangrove snapper The mangrove snapper or gray snapper (''Lutjanus griseus'') is a species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean from Massachusetts to Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda, and the Caribbean Sea. The species can be found in a wide varie ...

and grunts.

Nurse shark The nurse shark (''Ginglymostoma cirratum'') is an elasmobranch fish in the family Ginglymostomatidae. The conservation status of the nurse shark is globally assessed as Vulnerable in the IUCN List of Threatened Species. They are considered t ...

s are also seen resting at the sandy bottom under the ledges of the caverns.

Tourism

The islands are popular with

tourists Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...

due to the abundant marine and bird life. There are two restaurants and a bar which are serviced by staff who come in each day from the mainland of Anguilla. Thatch roofed structures provide the ambience for the vistas of the turquoise blue seas which attract visitors to the cays. The East Cay has a landing area which requires careful maneoeuvring. Snorkelling and diving are possible in the East Cay amidst the coral reefs, with several sunken ships in the area.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Official website
Uninhabited islands of Anguilla Tourist attractions in Anguilla Marine reserves Important Bird Areas of Anguilla Seabird colonies