St Paul Island

St Paul Island

Île Saint-Paul is a 6 km2 island in the Indian Ocean, part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. The island lies approximately 90km south of the larger Ile Amsterdam, 1300km north-east of the Kerguelen, and 3000km south-east of Reunion. The island is an important breeding ground for sea birds. There is a scientific research cabin on the island that is used for short-term scientific or ecological campaigns. However, there is no permanent population. The island is of volcanic origin with a triangular shape that does not measure more than 5 km at its widest point. It is the summit of an active volcano, the last eruption of which was in 1793. The island is located on the Amsterdam-Saint-Paul plateau. The plateau is also of volcanic origin.  Subantarctic Fur Seals, Southern Elephant Seals and Rockhopper Penguins breed on the island. The island has been designated by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area because it supports several breeding seabirds, along with the adjacent islet of Quille Rock. Because of its subtropical position, the island has a different bird life from subantarctic islands, with several breeding species uncommon in the region. The seabirds of Saint Paul's nested mainly on Quille Rock until the eradication of rats allowed some species, particularly MacGillivray's Prions and Great-Winged Petrels, to repopulate the main island. Additional species include a colony of about 9000 pairs of Northern Rockhopper Penguins, some 20 pairs of Sooty Albatrosses, a couple of pairs of Indian Yellow-Nosed Albatrosses, and minor numbers of Australasian Gannets, Fairy Prions, Little and Flesh-Footed Shearwaters, Wilson's Storm Petrels and Sooty Terns.