Xieyang Island
Xieyang Island (simplified Chinese: 斜阳岛; traditional Chinese: 斜陽島; pinyin: Xiéyáng Dǎo; Jyutping: ce4joeng4; lit. 'setting sun') is a Chinese island in the Gulf of Tonkin, located 9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi) southeast of Weizhou Island. Administratively, it, along with Weizhou Island, forms the town of Weizhou, in Haicheng District, Beihai, Guangxi.
 | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Area | 1.89 km2 (0.73 sq mi) |
| Length | 1.9 km (1.18 mi) |
| Width | 1.4 km (0.87 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 140.9 m (462.3 ft) |
| Highest point | Yangwei Peak (羊尾岭) |
| Administration | |
People's Republic of China | |
| Region | Guangxi |
| Prefecture-level city | Beihai |
| District | Haicheng |
| Town | Weizhou |
It has an area of only 1.89 square kilometres (0.73 sq mi) and is of volcanic origin. The island may be described as appearing like a goat with its front legs crouched, and so in ancient times was also called "斜羊島".
It is one of the tourist attractions of Beihai.
Along with Weizhou Island, waters around Xieyang Island was discovered in 2015 to be seasonally frequented by Bryde's whales, and the area has become the first acknowledged location among mainland coasts of China to have regular migrations of large cetaceans.[1]
References
- Bingyao Chen, Lin Zhu, Thomas A. Jefferson, Kaiya Zhou, Guang Yang, 2019, Coastal Bryde's Whales' (Balaenoptera edeni) Foraging Area Near Weizhou Island in the Beibu Gulf, Aquatic Mammals, Vol.45, Issue 3