Egmont Islands (also known as Egmont Atoll, or Six Iles) is an uninhabited

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most ...

that is one of the few emerged

coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

atolls An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most of ...

that make up the

Chagos Archipelago The Chagos Archipelago (, ) or Chagos Islands (formerly , and later the Oil Islands) is a group of seven atolls comprising more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean about south of the Maldives archipelago. This chain of islands is the southernmo ...

. This small

lies less than 10km south of the southwestern rim of the Great Chagos Bank submerged coral

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition (geol ...

. Its total size is 29km², including the

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...

and the fringing coral

. The land area totals about 4km². The nearest island is Danger Island on the Great Chagos Bank, less than 30km due north. There are two passages into the

along the Northern Rim, Fausse Passe in the northeast and a wider passage in the northwest. The Egmont Islands are one of the favorite anchoring spots for itinerant

yachtsmen Yachting is recreational boating activities using medium/large-sized boats or small ships collectively called yachts. Yachting is distinguished from other forms of boating mainly by the priority focus on comfort and luxury, the dependence on mar ...

passing through the Chagos.

Islands

The largest island is "Île Sud-Est" (Eastern Egmont), where the settlement was located, with an area of 1.5km². While "Île Lubine" is similar in size, the other islets are smaller. All islands are covered with

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

trees. The individual islands are all on the southern rim of the coral reef. They are, from southeast to northwest: #Île Sud-Est (Southeast Island) #Île Takamaka (Takamaka Island) #Île Carre Pate (Square Island) #Île Lubine (Lubine Island) #Île Cipaye (Cipaye Island) #Île aux Rats (Rat Island) West of Ile aux Rats there was a small islet known as Ilot aux Rats (Islet with Rats)(Ile des Rats) which has now merged with Ile aux Rats. Ile Cipaye is also spelled 'Sipaille' and 'Cipaille'. Isle Carre Pate is also spelled 'Carpathe'. On some maritime charts Ile Takamaka is spelled as 'Tattamucca'.

History

Ile Sudest, the largest island, was first settled in the last half of the 18th century, at the time when the other atolls of the Chagos were settled by the French. Commander

Robert Moresby Robert Moresby (15 June 1794 – 15 June 1854Some sources mention that he is thought to have died in 1863.) was a captain of the East India Company's Bombay Marine/Indian Navy who distinguished himself as a hydrographer, maritime surveyor ...

made a survey of this atoll and charted it in 1838. At that time there was a

plantation on this atoll. A causeway had been built linking the islands and some land reclamation was done. Eventually some of the islands merged with each other. The Egmont Islands were no longer inhabited in the second half of the 20th century, at the time that the

Chagossians The Chagossians — also called Chagos Islanders or — are an Afro-Asians, Afro-Asian ethnic group originating from freed African slaves as well as people of Asian (Indian and Malay) descent brought to the Chagos Islands, specifically Diego ...

or Ilois were evicted from the Chagos. In 1972–73 there was an underwater expedition to the Egmont Islands by the Joint Services (JSEI). Led by Sqn Leader “Dickie” Bird RAF, it was the first expedition of its kind in the Chagos. Cdr Alan Baldwin RN was the Deputy Leader and the scientific work was carried out under the direction of Dr

David Bellamy David James Bellamy (18 January 1933 – 11 December 2019) was an English academic, botanist, television presenter, author and prominent environmental campaigner in the UK and globally. His distinctive, energetic style of presenting became wel ...

. Its aim was to study

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in group ...

formation and growth, as well as the islands' flora and fauna. The expedition members were taken from Gan, Addu Atoll by RFA Gold Ranger to Egmont Atoll and after their survey was completed they were brought back to Gan by RFA Stromness. Following its success, a second expedition was undertaken to Danger Island the following year.Baldwin, EA (ed.), ''A report on the Joint Services Expedition to Danger Island in the central Indian Ocean, December 1974 to April 1975'', Ministry of Defence Publication, London 1975

References

*The Indian Ocean Pilot *British Hydrographic Services. Admiralty Charts. Maps in the Chagos Archipelago.
British Indian Ocean Territory
''

The World Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a Reference work, reference resource produced by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The off ...

External links

Chagos Islands coral collectionsThe molluscan fauna of Chagos (Indian Ocean) and an analysis of its broad distribution patterns
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2019 Atolls of the Chagos Archipelago Uninhabited islands of the British Indian Ocean Territory