Île de l'Est, or East Island, is a part of the subantarctic archipelago of the Crozet Islands. With an area of 130 km2 (50 sq mi) it is the second largest island of the group. It is part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.

Île de l'Est
Map of the island
Map
Geography
Coordinates46°25′48″S 52°12′27″E / 46.43000°S 52.20750°E / -46.43000; 52.20750
ArchipelagoCrozet Islands
Area130 km2 (50 sq mi)
Length18 km (11.2 mi)
Width8 km (5 mi)
Highest elevation1,090 m (3580 ft)
Highest pointMont Marion-Dufresne
Administration
France
Demographics
Population0
View of king penguins on a beach (foreground), a ship (middleground) and a distant, rugged island (background)
View of East Island (background) from king penguin colony on Possession Island, with the ship Marion Dufresne

Description

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The island is the easternmost of the archipelago, lying about 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Île de la Possession (Possession Island). The landscape is mainly bare rock; it is the most mountainous in the archipelago, with a high point of 1,090 metres (3,580 ft), and a rugged coastline of high cliffs. It is dissected by several steep-sided valleys of glacial origin. The only introduced animals are rabbits. There is no human infrastructure; it is only occasionally visited by researchers.[1]

Important Bird Area

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The island has been identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International as a breeding site for seabirds. Key species include king, gentoo, macaroni and northern rockhopper penguins, wandering, grey-headed, light-mantled, sooty and black-browed albatrosses, both northern and southern giant petrels, medium-billed and fairy prions, great-winged, soft-plumaged, white-chinned, grey, blue and Kerguelen petrels, Wilson's, grey-backed and black-bellied storm petrels, common and South Georgia diving petrels, Crozet blue-eyed shags, brown skuas and Kerguelen terns. Eaton's pintails are present. The island is also the site of the largest breeding population of southern elephant seals in the archipelago.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b BirdLife International. (2012). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Île de l'Est. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 2012-01-09.