In the vicinity of Australia there are severalhundreds of islands. Macquarie is one of them. The island is considered uninhabited, it is inhabited only by penguins and seals. About the features of the island of Macquarie read further in the article.
Macquarie is a small, stretched stretch of landin the Pacific Ocean. In its form it resembles a rectangular flap of tissue. Its length is 34 kilometers, and the width is only 5 kilometers. The area of Macquarie Island is 128 square kilometers. The highest point above sea level reaches 420 meters.
In administrative terms, Macquarie refers toThe island of Tasmania, although located about 1500 kilometers away from it. The island lies between Tasmania and Antarctica. Approximately 30 kilometers from the island of Macquarie are two groups of small islets: Judge and Clerk, Bishop and Clerk. The Bishop-and-Clerk Archipelago is part of the underwater volcanic ridge and territorially belongs to the Australian Union. Here is also the most southern point of Australia.
Millions of years ago, the clash of the Pacific andIndo-Australian lithospheric plates contributed to the formation of an underwater ridge, the surface part of which is Macquarie. The island is a real storehouse for geologists, because it contains ophiolites. This is also the only place in the ocean where the rocks of the mantle protrude above the water level. Thanks to its unique geological structure, Macquarie has been protected by UNESCO since 1997.
Scientists suggest that the first inhabitantsThe islands could have been Polynesians in the 13th-14th centuries. However, there is no direct confirmation of this, therefore the first discoverers of the Australian island of Macquarie, nevertheless, are Europeans. He, unexpectedly for himself, in 1810, discovered Frederic Hasselborough, who went in search of the habitats of seals. Discovering an uninhabited island, the British navigator designated it as the territory of South Wales and named in honor of the Welsh governor Laknela Makkuori.
In 1820, the Arctic seafarer ThaddeusBellingshausen (the discoverer of Antarctica) created the first map of the island of Macquarie. The exact location of the newly discovered land attracted hunters of penguins and seals. After that, the number of animals decreased to a critical point.
In 1890, the island was transferred to Tasmania, andleased by John Hatch for industrial purposes. In 1911, the island became the base for an Australian research expedition, led by Douglas Mawson. Later, Macquarie became a reserve under the control of Tasmania, in 1972 it received state status.
The island is mentioned in the book "Travel andwanderings in distant seas ", published in 1912. The author of the book is John Thompson. As a result of the shipwreck, he got to Macquarie and stayed there for about 4 months. According to legend, Thompson sailed to the island for hidden treasures.
The climate conditions of Macquarie Island are notallowed the British in the XIX century to establish a permanent settlement on it. The surrounding seas make the island’s climate quite harsh. It is characterized as wet subantarctic. Winds (often hurricane), fogs and rains dominate here. About 1000 mm of precipitation falls annually.
Strong clouds do not allow the light to break through.The number of sunny hours per year is 856, a smaller figure among the islands belongs only to Fareram. The average positive temperature in July is about 4.9 degrees, and the temperature in November is 6.5 degrees.
The coastline is smooth in the east and slightlyindented bays and gulfs in the west. The coast of the island is rocky, and reefs are hidden under the water. Macquarie is formed by two plateaus on the south and north sides, which connects the isthmus of the plain. The plateau is located at an altitude of about 100-200 meters above sea level. The mountains of Elder, Fletcher and Hamilton are the highest points.
Cruel climate and considerable remoteness frommainland made the island is not favorable for the lives of people. Currently, the permanent population of the island is zero people. The exception is the employees of ANARE who live here temporarily.
Настоящие жители острова – это пингвины.There are about 80,000 thousand of them on Macquarie. The fauna of Macquarie Island is represented by endemic cormorants, sub-Antarctic fur seals. Over three million seabirds are represented by 13 different species.
The vegetation of Macquarie Island is similar tovegetation of southern New Zealand. This is mainly low-growing grass and lichen. Woody species are completely absent, but swamp species are actively growing.
С каждым годом количество нетронутых человеком places is getting smaller. This Australian island as he could, defended his possessions with the help of harsh natural conditions. However, the man got here.
The people who arrived on the island brought rats on it,rabbits and cats, which led to a real catastrophe. Animals began to eat the unique local vegetation, reducing it by almost half. That, in turn, led to soil erosion and collapses. Cats killed about 60,000 birds a year.
In 2012, brought animals almost removed from the island. It was the hardest thing to eradicate rabbits, and several individuals are found periodically to this day.
