Roca Redonda is a flat-topped, steep-sided

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanen ...

located roughly northwest of the island of Isabela, in the

Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands ( Spanish: , , ) are an archipelago of volcanic islands. They are distributed on each side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean, surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere, and are part of the Republic of Ecuad ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

. It measures long and wide with a maximum elevation of . Its isolation and inaccessibility coupled with its rocky cliffs riddled with crevices and crossed by ledges has made Roca Redonda a haven for nesting

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 envir ...

s. This small volcanic island is the remains of a large

shield volcano A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more vi ...

that has vastly eroded away below sea level. Potassium–argon dating of Roca Redonda indicates that the islet is at least 53,000 +/- 54,000 years old. However, it remains unknown when the last eruption occurred from the shield volcano. Several shallow submarine

fumarole A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or other rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...

s exist around the island and may indicate that the volcano is still active.

References

{{Ecuador-geo-stub Islands of the Galápagos Islands Volcanoes of the Galápagos Islands Pleistocene shield volcanoes Polygenetic shield volcanoes Seabird colonies Shield volcanoes of Ecuador Potentially active volcanoes

See also

References