Luconia Shoals Department of State map 2016587286 (2015) (cropped)

Louisa Reef (

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely surrounded by t ...

ms, Terumbu Semarang Barat Kecil, lit=;

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

) is a

coral atoll 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 secre ...

in the southern reaches of the

Spratly Islands The Spratly Islands ( fil, Kapuluan ng Kalayaan; zh, c=南沙群島/南沙群岛, s=, t=, p=Nánshā Qúndǎo; Malay, id, Kepulauan Spratly; vi, Quần đảo Trường Sa) are a disputed archipelago in the South China Sea. Composed ...

. The reef is oval in shape, approximately 1.5 km (1 mile) east to west and 0.5 km (500 yards) north to south. While most of Louisa Reef is submerged, some portions emerge at low tide and a few small rocks remain above water even at high tide. The atoll rises as deeply undercut walls and steep slopes from very deep water with extensive stony and soft corals. A navigation beacon built by Malaysia is at its southwest point and the highest visible rock is at the southeast end. Safe anchorage is difficult to find, depending on the wind and currents, but there are sandy areas at the northwest and southwest ends. The nearest reliable shelter for boats is the lagoon at

Swallow Reef Swallow Reef, also known as ms, Pulau Layang-Layang, lit=; vi, Đá Hoa Lau; Mandarin ; Celerio Reef ( tl, Bahura ng Celerio, lit=), is an oceanic atoll of the Spratly Islands administered by Malaysia, which is situated approximately northwe ...

, 128 km (80 miles) to the northeast. , the shoal was claimed by Brunei, China, and Taiwan. Malaysia previously claimed Louisa Reef and operated a small obelisk-like concrete navigational light beacon there. However, Malaysia has apparently dropped its claim in deference to the claim of neighbouring

that the reef lies on its continental shelf.

References

External links

Map showing Louisa Reef within Brunei claim
Reefs of the Spratly Islands Islands of Brunei {{island-stub