Rose Atoll Marine National Monument is a

United States National Monument In the United States, a national monument is a protected area that can be created from any land owned or controlled by the federal government by proclamation of the President of the United States or an act of Congress. National monuments prot ...

in the

South Pacific Ocean South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

, covering and encompassing the Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, which was established in 1973 with 39,066 acres (only emergent). The monument's marine areas are likely to also be incorporated in the

Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary The National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa (formerly the Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuaryhttp://americansamoa.noaa.gov ''National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa.'' NOAA.gov. Retrieved 1 January 2018.) is one of many federally-desig ...

Rose Atoll Rose Atoll, sometimes called Rose Island or Motu O Manu ("Bird Island") by people of the nearby Manu'a Islands, is an oceanic atoll within the U.S. territory of American Samoa. An uninhabited wildlife refuge, it is the southernmost point belo ...

is a small island about to the east of

Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Au ...

, the principal island of

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...

. It is a nesting site for rare species of

petrel Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. Description The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross f ...

shearwater Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds in the petrel family Procellariidae The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the diving petrels, the prions, and the shearwa ...

s, and

tern Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated as a subgroup of the family Laridae which includes gulls and skimmers and consists of e ...

s; and at the signing of the order establishing the monument, President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

noted that "the waters surrounding the atoll are the home of many rare species, including giant clams and reef sharks—as well as an unusual abundance of rose-colored corals". The wildlife refuge is managed by the

United States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

, and the wider-ranging monument waters are co-managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and

NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

References

External links

Rose Atoll Marine National Monument
– FWS
Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge

Rose Atoll Marine National Monument
– NOAA Fisheries
Rose Atoll National Wildlife Refuge Planning Update

Copy of official map
of National Monument designation (PDF)

2009 establishments in American Samoa National monuments in insular areas of the United States Protected areas established in 2009 Protected areas of American Samoa {{US-protected-area-stub