Crozet Islands
The
Crozet Islands (Îles Crozet/Crozet Archipelago) are a major, and uninhabited, group of 5 islands and around 40
smaller islets of the southern Indian Ocean. They are located 1,340 km west from the Kerguelen
Archipelago and 2,350 km south of Madagascar. The nearest island neighbours in the region are the South African
administered Prince Edward Islands located 1,065 km to the west. The islands cover an
area of 350 km² and form part of the Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises (French Southern
and Antarctic Territories).
The islands emerge from the submarine Crozet Plateau and consist of an eastern (L'Oriental) and western (L'Occidental) group, separated by the 100 km wide channel formed by the Indivat Basin. The islands of the west consist of Île aux Cochons (67 km²), the Îlots des Apôtres — consisting of the islands of Grande Île, Petit Île and 30 or so smaller islets (with a combined area of 2 km²), the Île des Pingouins (3 km²) and the reefs Brisants de l'Heroine. The eastern islands contain the Crozet's two largest islands of Île de la Possession (153 km²) and Île de l'Est (122 km²) — see panoramic image.
The Crozet Islands are volcanic in origins, although volcanic activity has long since ceased. Subsequent glaciation, uplift and erosion has shaped the islands in to the forms present today — although numerous volcanic cones and calderas are still visible. The islands are mountainous, being cut by deep valleys and are often lined by steep slopes or sheer cliffs; the highest point is found on Île de l'Est, where the Pic Marion-Dufresne rises to a height of 1,090 m. The coastlines are often irregular being punctuated by deep bays and headlands. Coasts are lined with sandy to rocky beaches. Vegetation is Sub-Antarctic in nature and can be described as tundra-like, being dominated by grasses, herbs, low shrubs, ferns, mosses and lichens.
The islands serve as important locations for breeding and feeding seabirds — including the largest breeding ground (300,000 pairs) of the King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus), and important populations (over 2 million pairs) of the Macaroni Penguin (Eudyptes chrysolophus) and 150,000 pairs of Eastern Rockhopper Penguin (Eudyptes chrysocome).
Climatically the islands are generally cold, overcast and extremely windy. With annual temperatures of 5 °C, rainfall of over 2,400 mm (falling on 300 days of the year), and with wind speeds of over 100 kph on 100 days of the year. Temperatures rarely dip below 5 °C in winter or exceed 18 °C in summer.
