Tarutao National Park ( th, อุทยานแห่งชาติตะรุเตา) consists of 51

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s in the Strait of Malacca, off the

coast The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

of Satun Province of southern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

. The Tarutao National Park consists of two island groups: ''Tarutao'' ( th, หมู่เกาะตะรุเตา, or ) and ''Adang-Rawi'' ( th, หมู่เกาะอาดัง-ราวี, ), which are scattered from 20 to 70 kilometres' distance from the south-westernmost point of mainland Thailand. The park covers an area of 931,250 rai ~ of which ocean and island. The southernmost end of the park lies on the border with

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, just north of Langkawi. Tarutao became Thailand's second marine national park on 19 April 1974. The coastal Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park had been designated in 1966. The name "tarutao" is a

Thai Thai or THAI may refer to: * Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia ** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand ** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand *** Thai script *** Thai (Unicode block ...

corruption of its original

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

name, "pulau tertua", "old, mysterious, and primitive island." Ko Tarutao was the setting for '' Survivor: Thailand'', the 2002 season for the U.S. reality television series, ''

Survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: Actual survivors * *Last survivors of historical events Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Found ...

''.

Main (larger) islands

There are essentially nine islands of note in the Tarutao/Adang-Rawi

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...

s: * Tarutao Archipelago (approximately 30 km off the Thai coast) :*

Ko Tarutao Ko Tarutao island ( th, เกาะตะรุเตา) is the largest island of Tarutao National Marine Park in Satun Province of southern Thailand. The island is long and wide. It is one of the most unspoiled islands in Andaman Sea and in ...

( th, เกาะตะรุเตา) – The largest of the islands, Ko Tarutao is 26.5 km long, and 11 km wide. The highest point is over 700 m. Forest covers over 70% of the island. * Klang Archipelago (approximately 38 km off the Thai coast) :*Ko Klang ( th, เกาะกลาง), Ko Khai ( th, เกาะไข), Ko Ta-Nga ( th, เกาะตางาห์) * The Adang/Rawi group of islands (approximately 50 km west of Tarutao) :*

Ko Adang Ko Adang ( th, เกาะอาดัง, ) is the second biggest island within Tarutao National Marine Park, in Thailand, very close to Ko Lipe island. The island is 6 km long and 5 km wide. The highest point on the island is 690 m. ...

( th, เกาะอาดัง), Ko Rawi ( th, เกาะราวี),

Ko Lipe Ko Lipe ( th, เกาะหลีเป๊ะ, ) is a small island in the Adang-Rawi Archipelago of the Strait of Malacca, in Satun Province of southwest Thailand, close to the Malaysian border. Its Thai name, the corrupted form of the orig ...

( th, เกาะหลีเป๊ะ), Ko Butang (also written as Tong or Dong; th, เกาะดง), Ko Lek ( th, เกาะเหล็ก) :* In the Adang Archipelago, the small (4 km²) island of Lipe is the most important. With water available year-round, it is the home of the largest permanent settlement, of approximately 800, and the gateway for boat transportation in and out of the Adang group.

History

The park was established in 1974. In 1982, it was listed as one of the original ASEAN Heritage Parks. It was also submitted to UNESCO for inclusion as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

in 1990, but its listing was deferred at the fifteenth session of the

World Heritage Committee The World Heritage Committee selects the sites to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger, defines the use of the World Heritage Fund and allocates financial assistance ...

in 1991.

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

requested stronger management of the area. The rivers and swamps of Tarutao Island were the last known refuge for the

saltwater crocodile The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats and brackish wetlands from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. It has been listed ...

, ''Crocodylus porosus'', within Thailand. The species is now extinct in the area. The oldest surviving eyewitness description of the island dates from December 1606 and January 1607 and is contained in the travelogue of the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

Admiral

Cornelis Matelief de Jonge Cornelis Matelief de Jonge (c. 1569 – October 17, 1632) was a Dutch admiral who was active in establishing Dutch power in Southeast Asia during the beginning of the 17th century. His fleet was officially on a trading mission, but its true inten ...

. In the late-1930s the island was used as a penal colony for Thai

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

s. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, when support from the mainland was cut off, the guards and prisoners banded together and raided ships sailing through the waters near the island. The raids were masterminded by an American plantation owner who blamed the war for the loss of his fortune. He was assisted by two British

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

s who were on the run for murder and who ironically landed on Tarutao to sit out the war. They sank 130 ships, always killing everyone on board. After the

pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

of Tarutao were eradicated by British forces at the end of the war, fishermen and farmers took up residence on the island.

Attractions

*Son Bay (Ao Son) is the only bay on the west side of Tarutao National Park and is known as a place where turtles come to lay their eggs. Its longest beach is about 3 km. *Luu Doo Waterfall on Son Bay is the only waterfall in Tarutao National Park. Underwater it is full of rock formations. *Pantaemaraka Gulf has many pine trees and a clean white beach. Pantaemaraka Gulf is becoming a popular tourist attraction. *Crocodile Cave is 300 metres deep. Tourists going to Crocodile Cave must go by long-tail boat (15 minutes) from Pantaemaraka Gulf and on the way to Crocodile Cave they can see mangrove forest.

Ecosystem

In November 2018, the Department of Natural Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation banned the use of plastic and Styrofoam containers in Tarutao Islands National Park, according to Assistant Park Director Kittipong Sanui.

Additional images

File:Koh_Adang_sunset.jpg, File:Koh Tarutao, Thailand, Rocky beach.jpg, File:West coast of Koh Tarutao.jpg, File:Koh Rawi (island), Tree, Thailand.jpg, Koh Rawi File:Koh Adang (island), Thailand.jpg, Koh Adang File:Koh Lipe (island), Tropical lagoon, Thailand.jpg, Turquoise waters between Koh Lipe and Koh Adang File:TaRuTao14.jpg, File:TaRuTao1.jpg,

References

External links

* * {{authority control Geography of Satun province National parks of Thailand ASEAN heritage parks Islands of Thailand Strait of Malacca Protected areas established in 1974 Tourist attractions in Satun province 1974 establishments in Thailand