St. Joseph Atoll

Saint Joseph Atoll is part of the Amirante Islands group, which are in the Outer Islands (Coralline Seychelles) coral archipelago of the Seychelles islands and nation. The atoll is located southwest of the granitic Inner Seychelles archipelago, with a distance of 248 km south of Victoria, Seychelles.

St. Joseph Atoll
Map of D'Arros Island and neighboring St. Joseph Atoll, part of the Amirante Islands group
St. Joseph Atoll is located in Seychelles
St. Joseph Atoll
St. Joseph Atoll
Geography
LocationIndian Ocean
Coordinates05°24′S 53°18′E
TypeAtoll
ArchipelagoSeychelles
Adjacent toIndian Ocean
Total islands13
Major islands
  • St. Joseph
  • Fouquet
  • Benjamin
  • Paul
  • Ressource
Area1.632 km2 (0.630 sq mi)
Highest elevation3 m (10 ft)
Administration
GroupOuter Islands
Sub-GroupAmirante Islands
Sub-GroupD'Arros and St. Joseph Atoll Special Reserve[1]
DistrictsOuter Islands District
Largest settlementSt. Joseph (pop. 0)
Demographics
Population0 (2014)
Pop. density0/km2 (0/sq mi)
Ethnic groupsCreole, French, East Africans, Indians.
Additional information
Time zone
ISO codeSC-26
Official websitewww.seychelles.travel/en/discover/the-islands/outer-islands

History

The atoll was discovered in 1770 by European sailors.[2]

Private atoll

In 1960, The island became the property of a Seychellois family, who built a coconut plantation on the bigger St. Joseph island.

Nature preserve

In August 2012 it was revealed that the atoll was sold, together with D'Arros Island, for US$60 million, to be managed by the Save Our Seas Foundation.[3][4]

Geography

Saint Joseph Atoll is located only 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi) east of the eastern part of D'Arros Island, but it is a separate geographical unit, separated by 60–62 metres (197–203 ft) deep water of a 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) wide channel, which is deeper than much of the Amirantes Bank. The land area of the Atoll occupies 1.21 square kilometres (0.47 sq mi). The main Saint Joseph island is of crescent shaped, flat coral sand cay, 2.2 kilometres (1.4 mi) long and with average 0.4 kilometres (0.25 mi) wide, and nowhere higher than 3 metres (9.8 ft). The tree tops are about 24 m high.

Coral reefs

The Atoll stands on a detached patch coral reef similarly orientated, with maximum dimensions of 6.6 kilometres (4.1 mi) and 4.4 kilometres (2.7 mi). Its total area is 22.53 km2, of which 11.74 km2 comprises the peripheral reef flat, 4.8 km2 of the interior lagoon, and only 1.39 km2 of the land area of all islets. Depths of 500 m are found only 1.5 km east of the reef edge, and of 1000 m one kilometer further east.

Lagoon

The surrounding reef completely encloses the lagoon. At low water it drains over a narrow sill, Passe Lerein Fin, at its western end. The lagoon has a maximum depth of 6.4 m. Other soundings range from 2.1 to 3.7 m. In addition to being exceptionally wide, the peripheral reefs are covered (except on the west side) with mobile sand. Inter-tidal sand sheets are encroaching on the margins of the lagoon on its windward side, which is marked for much of its extent by a discontinuous linear sandbar. There are no growing reefs in the lagoon.

List of islets

The atoll has 13 sandy islets: the three larger ones along the northeast and east shore, which are covered by coconut plantations, and the remaining ones in the south:

 IslandtypeArea
(hectares)		Location
1Varssand cay0.2105°24′22″S 53°19′34″E
2Ressourceisland12.1005°24′34″S 53°19′36″E
3Fouquet Island (ÎIe aux Fouquets)island16.7005°25′23″S 53°20′24″E
4Pelican Cay (Pélicans)sand cay6.0005°26′10″S 53°20′56″E
5Saint Joseph Islandisland108.4005°26′28″S 53°21′35″E
6Carcassaye Islandsand cay2.7205°24′22″S 53°21′23″E
7Sable Isletsand cay0.1205°26′52″S 53°21′28″E
8Benjamen Islandsand cay6.8005°26′28″S 53°20′47″E
9Ferrari Islandsand cay1.0205°26′47″S 53°20′56″E
10Chien Islandsand cay3.2505°27′00″S 53°20′50″E
11Paul Island (ÎIe aux Poules)island4.5805°26′44″S 53°20′28″E
12Banc aux Cocos eastsand cay0.7005°26′12″S 53°19′36″E
13Banc aux Cocos westsand cay0.6005°26′04″S 53°19′21″E
 St. Joseph AtollAtoll163.205°26′S 53°21′E

Administration

The island belongs to Outer Islands District.[5]

Demographics

The atoll is currently uninhabited. it hosted a small population of 10, which now moved to D'Arros Island. There are several ruined buildings on the main island of St. Joseph, near the cultivated area at the western end.

Transport

You can reach the atoll with flights to unpaved airstrip (ICAO: FSDA).

  • Map 1
    Map 1
  • District Map
    District Map

References
  1. https://www.facebook.com/todayinsey/posts/694669610570852
  2. Info on Mauritius and its dependencies
  3. "L'Oreal heiress Bettencourt sells Seychelles island". BBC News. August 1, 2012. They will manage it as a nature reserve.
  4. "The D'Arros Group of Island becomes a natural reserve managed by Save our Seas Foundation". Save Our Seas Foundation. August 1, 2012.
  5. District map
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