Teraina

Coordinates: 4°41′00″N 160°22′40″W / 4.68333°N 160.37778°W / 4.68333; -160.37778
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Prospect Island (California).
Main articles: Kiribati and Line Islands

Teraina
Washington Island
I-Kiribati
Additional information
Time zone

Teraina (written also Teeraina,

coconut palm forest; this is the only permanent freshwater lake in the whole of Kiribati.[3]

Measuring about 5.4 by 2.1 kilometres (3.4 by 1.3 miles) NW-SE and SW-NE, it has a land area of about 9.55 square kilometres (3.69 square miles);

Northern Line Islands. However, population density (177 per km2)[1] is three times as high as on Tabuaeran[1] and vastly more than on the much larger (300-plus km2) Kiritimati with its about 15 people/km2.[4]

There are two

airstrip of some 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) length exists near Kaaitara
. It may become temporarily unusable after heavy rains.

History

Men's meeting house presided over by island chief, November 1968

Permanent early human occupation of Teraina is disputed. Although there were no occupants on the island at the time of European discovery, a number of human made sites have been identified on the island including dry stacked stone architecture. Additionally, ethnographic data from the Cook Islands and the Tuamotu Islands points to Polynesian knowledge of the island. Perhaps the most compelling discovery on Teraina is the recovery of an intact voyaging canoe.[6] Although archaeological sites are known to exist on the island, the general lack of fresh water makes long-term human habitation unlikely though more work is needed in establishing the timeline of human use.

Teraina was sighted on 12 June 1798 by the

humid climate prevents the formation of substantial deposits. It was occupied by Captain John English and people from Manihiki
in about 1860.

Later William Greig who began planting the island with coconut trees.[9] Eventually the sons of Greig owned the plantation with Father Emmanuel Rougier [fr] until he sold his interest to the Fanning Island Limited, and started a coconut plantation on Christmas Island.[9]

Fanning Island was annexed by the British by Commander Nichols of HMS Cormorant on May 29, 1889. It became a part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony in 1916. The name of the island was changed to Teraina in 1979 when Kiribati gained independence.[1] The major export of Teraina is copra, the dried meat of the coconut.

The Burns Philip Copra Company operated plantations on the island after the

Second World War.[1] At various times, contract laborers were brought from Manihiki, Tahiti, and the Gilbert Islands to work the coconut plantations.[5] More recently, settlement from Gilbert group has been encouraged during the re-settlement schemes of 1989–1995.[1]

Washington Island Post Office opened on 1 February 1921, closed around 1923, reopened in 1924, closed in 1948 and reopened again around August 1979.[10]

Political geography

Teraina population by village[11]
No. Village Population
(2010 census[1])
1 Abaiang 146
2 Kauamwemwe 198
3 Uteute 141
4 Kaaitara 0
5 Tangkore 410
6 Matanibike 91
7 Arabata 353
8 Mwakeitari 177
9 Onauea 174
Teraina 1690

The population of Teraina lives in nine villages. It is increasing; from 416 in 1978, it had risen to 936 in 1990 and had exceeded 1,000 by 2000. The population of Teraina in the 2010 census was 1,690. Compared to the 2005 population of 1,155 and the 2000 population of 1,087, the population is growing very rapidly. The population of Teraina grew by 535 people between 2005 and 2010, an annual population growth of 7.9%.[1]

All villages are listed in the following table, with the preliminary census results of 2005, counterclockwise around the perimeter of the atoll, starting in the northeast with Abaiang and ending in the southeast with Onauea. Tangkore is near the westernmost point of Teraina:

Teraina has an unusual age structure; nearly half the population (44%) is aged under 15 and one in five people (19%) are children under five years. There are more males than females in almost all age groups except the elderly.[1]

Physical geography

Teraina in April 2006, SSW on top. Note flooded bogland in west (right) part of island.

As regards its physical characteristics, this is one of the most interesting islands in the Pacific. It is a

humid, making it one of the "wet" Pacific islands.[12]

The western inland is made up by

motor boats transporting people and produce. There is some removal of peat and sediments to stem the lake's ongoing infilling; in addition it seems that in recent times, the lake's level is slowly rising again so that the eastern bog's area has receded somewhat. The peat reaches thicknesses of about 1–1.5 meters (3.3–4.9 ft), much of which is located above sea level.[5]

It is also not precisely known where the last connection of the inland waters to the ocean were, and when they closed. The southeast end is more likely however, as the island is in the

flotsam would therefore predominantly land at the island's western side.[5] Thus, it is to be expected that land build up faster there. This also agrees with the eastern location of the remaining lake. In any case, the canal network now opens to the sea south of Tangkore, and there is a direct connection from the lake to the ocean at Teraina's eastern tip.[14]

Ecology

extinct. Last, the island's biodiversity
seems to prove quite conclusively that, probably by about 1200 AD or so, the island was temporarily inhabited by a significant number of humans.

At present, there is no formal protection for the islands' ecosystems or species, but it has been suggested to legally protect key habitat, namely the boglands.

Rimatara lorikeet (Vini kuhlii) does not appear to be in need of formal protection;[15] it actually benefits from human land use change and the feral cats. The former provides the birds with more habitat, while the cats have so far managed to keep Teraina completely free of black rats (Rattus rattus) which due to their tree-climbing habits would seriously jeopardize the species' existence, should they become established in numbers.[15] Given the negative experience e.g. from Rennell Island, maintenance of a vigorous tilapia
fishery would seem to be advisable. These fish certainly represent a valuable source of protein on Teraina, and in fact were originally introduced for that purpose.

Flora

Over 30 species of flowering plants are known from the island, but most seem to be not originally native.

Phymatosorus scolopendria. In more elevated places near the beach, Pisonia (catchbird tree) atoll forest is found, though Teraina has not that much of this ubiquitous Pacific ecosystem for its size.[3]

The most conspicuous plants of the boglands are the arum Cyrtosperma merkusii and the giant bulrush (Schoenoplectus californicus).[3]

Among the local crops,

Frangipani (Plumeria) and hibiscus are popular as ornamental plants.[5]

Birds

Red-footed boobies at Palmyra Atoll, Teraina's neighbor island

Though numerous

eastern reef egret
(Egretta sacra), widespread throughout the region, can also be found on Teraina.

Among

shorebirds, gulls, and occasionally ducks of North American and East Asian
species may occur as vagrants.

In historic times, two species of landbirds and one subspecies of duck have been recorded. The latter, Coues's gadwall (Anas strepera couesi), was the only distinct subspecies of the widespread gadwall.[13] It is surrounded by considerable mystery, mainly as regards the origin of the population, the age and therefore validity of the subspecies (it is sometimes disputed to be significantly distinct), and the causes and date of its disappearance. Only two specimens are known – a couple that is not fully mature, and therefore only limited information can be gleaned from it. What is certain is that there was a duck population of some size in the mid-1870s,[13] while in 1900 all were gone.

The bokikokiko (Acrocephalus aequinoctialis) is Kiribati's endemic reed-warbler. This small greyish passerine is well-known, due to its bold and inquisitive habits, and its song, a series of alternating higher and lower squeaks after which it is named.

The

extinct on many islands on which it formerly occurred, while the Teraina population, considered crucially important for its survival, contains some 60% of the remaining global wild population.[15] Ironically, the reason for the Rimitara lorikeet thriving on Teraina is the replacement of native forest with coconut plantations; these birds feed mainly on the nectar of coconut palm flowers and nest in old coconut shells or husks.[15]

As it thus seems clear that there was prehistoric human activity of some degree on Teraina, it is also likely that birds became extinct consequently, like on all such Outer Pacific islands for which research has been conducted.

Ducula),[19] and maybe a Todiramphus kingfisher[20] or an Aplonis starling[21] make the most likely candidates for birds gone extinct prehistorically. It must be considered, however, that given the lack of fieldwork it is not quite clear what effect changing sea levels would have had on Teraina. If the sea level were only half a meter (c. 2 ft) higher it is certainly possible that the forest and freshwater lake would be replaced by shrubland or dunes and a brackish lagoon. That notwithstanding, it is well possible that a Polynesian sandpiper related to or identical with the Christmas sandpiper from Kiritimati once lived on Teraina.[22]

Other fauna

As with most outer Pacific islands, there are no native land mammals.

Polynesian rats (

Rattus exulans) are present on Teraina,[15] apparently since prehistoric times. They may have arrived with flotsam after storms further west, or accidentally or deliberately (as food) been introduced by prehistoric seafarers. Their present-day impact on the bird population is minor, but if rails were once present on Teraina, the rats had probably some role in these birds' disappearance, and maybe in that of any other birds gone extinct in prehistoric times too. If a Polynesian sandpiper once bred on Teraina, it is almost certainly those rats that are responsible for these birds' disappearance; only a single taxon
of Prosobonia remains today, precariously holding its own on atolls that are devoid of any rat species.

marbled eel
is also found in Teraina's lake.

Feral dogs, cats and pigs occur in varying numbers on Teraina; the cats especially are responsible for some decline in the number of ground-nesting seabirds.[3] On the other hand, as noted above, the cats have thus far kept the rat population at bay.

catadromous
and able to migrate some distance on dry land. Thus it may be presumed that the lake is continuously being restocked from the Pacific, though apparently no actual field data exists on the habits of the eels of Teraina.

As on many

Birgus latro) is often encountered on Teraina.[13]

A few green turtles (

Chelonia mydas) nest on the beaches. It is not a very important nesting site however and the clutches have a rather low probability of success, as Teraina is one of the Kiribati islands where turtle egg collecting is permitted.[3]

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "22. Teeraina" (PDF). Office of Te Beretitenti – Republic of Kiribati Island Report Series. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 May 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  2. ^ POK (2007)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Teeb'aki in Scott (1993)
  4. ^ "20. Kiritimati" (PDF). Office of Te Beretitenti – Republic of Kiribati Island Report Series. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Resture (2004)
  6. ^ Emory, K.P. (1934). "Archaeology of the Equatorial Pacific Islands". Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin. 123: 8–9 – via Babel.
  7. ^ "Krusenstern".
  8. ^ Bryan (1942)
  9. ^ a b "Islands for Sale – Romantic History of Fanning and Washington". V(12) Pacific Islands Monthly. 23 July 1935. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  10. ^ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
  11. ^ "Teeraina" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 September 2013.
  12. ^ Streets (1877), Resture (2004)
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i Streets (1877)
  14. ^ http://faculty.washington.edu/jsachs/lab/www/Research/Kiribati_Expedition_2005/Xmas130.jpg [bare URL image file]
  15. ^ a b c d e BLI (2007)
  16. ^ http://faculty.washington.edu/jsachs/lab/www/Research/Kiribati_Expedition_2005/Xmas134.jpg [bare URL image file]
  17. ^ Tregear (1891)
  18. Porphyrio paepae on Hiva Oa
    .
  19. Marquesan imperial-pigeons
    (D. galeata) occurring to the south.
  20. ^ Such a bird would probably have belonged to the sacred kingfisher (T. sanctus) group; that species today occurs as a vagrant in Micronesia, and related forms are resident in SE Polynesia.
  21. bay starlings (A. ulietensis) of the Society Islands
    .
  22. ^ Steadman (2006)

References

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