MontagueS

Sean Montague

Collaborator Contributions

<p>The East Rennell site in the Solomon Islands was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998. The site contains one of the largest raised coral atolls in the world, with a marine area extending three nautical miles to sea. The strong climatic effects of frequent cyclones make the area a true natural laboratory for scientific study. However, there is currently little detailed information available about the marine regions within the site.</p>

East Rennell, Solomon Islands

The East Rennell site in the Solomon Islands was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998. The site contains one of the largest raised coral atolls in the world, with a marine area extending three nautical miles to sea. The strong climatic effects of frequent cyclones make the area a true natural laboratory for scientific study. However, there is currently little detailed information available about the marine regions within the site.

<p>The Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve site in Russia was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004. Located well above the Arctic Circle, the site includes the mountainous Wrangel Island, Herald Island, and surrounding waters. The reserve has exceptionally high levels of biodiversity and boasts the world's largest population of Pacific walrus (<em>Odobenus rosmarus divergens</em> – pictured here) and the world’s highest density of ancestral polar bear dens (Ursus maritimus). It’s also an important feeding ground for gray whales (<em>Eschrichtius robustus</em>) migrating from Mexico and is the northernmost nesting ground for 100 migratory bird species, many of which are endangered.</p>

Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve, Russian Federation

The Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve site in Russia was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004. Located well above the Arctic Circle, the site includes the mountainous Wrangel Island, Herald Island, and surrounding waters.

<p>The Banc d'Arguin National Park site in Mauritania was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1989. Fringing the Atlantic coast, the park comprises sand dunes, coastal swamps, small islands, and shallow coastal waters. A wide variety of migrating birds spend the winter, while several species of sea turtle and dolphin, used by fishermen to locate shoals of fish, can also be found here.</p>

Banc d'Arguin National Park, Mauritania

The Banc d'Arguin National Park site in Mauritania was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1989. Fringing the Atlantic coast, the park comprises sand dunes, coastal swamps, small islands, and shallow coastal waters. A wide variety of migrating birds spend the winter, while several species of sea turtle and dolphin, used by fishermen to locate shoals of fish, can also be found here.

<p>The Phoenix Islands Protected Area site in Kiribati was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2010. The site encompasses one of the world's largest intact oceanic coral archipelago ecosystems, together with 14 known underwater seamounts and other deep-sea habitats. There are about 200 coral species, 500 fish species, 18 marine mammals, and 44 kinds of birds. The structure and functioning of the site's ecosystem illustrates its pristine nature and importance as a migration route and reservoir of organisms to surrounding exploited areas. Pictured here is a school of ornate butteryfly fish (<em>Chaetodon ornatissimus</em>), one of the many colorful fish protected within the boundaries of the site.</p>

Phoenix Islands Protected Area, Kiribati

The Phoenix Islands Protected Area site in Kiribati was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2010. The site encompasses one of the world's largest intact oceanic coral archipelago ecosystems, together with 14 known underwater seamounts and other deep-sea habitats. There are about 200 coral species, 500 fish species, 18 marine mammals, and 44 kinds of birds. The structure and functioning of the site's ecosystem illustrates its pristine nature and importance as a migration route and reservoir of organisms to surrounding exploited areas.

<p>A grey seal at Iceland's Surtsey Island, a World Heritage site. Surtsey is unique because it’s been protected since its formation in the 1960's, providing the world with a pristine natural laboratory.</p>

A Unique World Heritage Site: Surtsey, Iceland

The Surtsey site in Iceland was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008. Surtsey is a new island, formed by volcanic eruptions that took place from 1963 to 1967. The site is unique, because it’s been protected since its formation, providing the world with a pristine natural laboratory. Free from human interference, Surtsey has been producing unique long-term information on the colonization process of new land by plant and animal life, both terrestrial and marine.

<p>The Wadden Sea site in Germany and the Netherlands was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2009. It hosts marine mammals, including the harbor seal <em><strong><a href="http://eol.org/pages/328629/overview">Phoca vitulina</a></strong>,</em>&nbsp;pictured here.</p>

Wadden Sea, Germany & the Netherlands

The Wadden Sea site in Germany and the Netherlands was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2009. It’s a large relatively flat coastal wetland environment, with tidal channels, sandy shoals, sea-grass meadows, mussel beds, sandbars, mudflats, salt marshes, estuaries, beaches, and dunes. The site is the breeding and wintering area for up to 12 million birds each year.

<p>The Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems site in France was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008. The site features an exceptional diversity of coral and fish species and a continuum of habitats from mangroves to seagrasses, with one of the world's most diverse concentrations of reef structures. The lagoons also provide habitat to a number of emblematic or threatened marine species such as giant grouper, black-spotted stingray, several species of sharks, whales, dolphins, turtles, and the third largest population of dugongs in the world.</p>

Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems, France

The Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems site in France was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008. The site features an exceptional diversity of coral and fish species and a continuum of habitats from mangroves to seagrasses, with one of the world's most diverse concentrations of reef structures. The lagoons also provide habitat to a number of emblematic or threatened marine species such as giant grouper, black-spotted stingray, several species of sharks, whales, dolphins, turtles, and the third largest population of dugongs in the world.

<p>The Gulf of Porto: Calanche of Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve site in France was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1983. The site's vegetation is an outstanding example of scrubland. Seagulls, cormorants, and sea eagles can be found here, while the clear waters, with their islets and inaccessible caves, host a rich and diverse marine life.</p>

Gulf of Porto: Calanche of Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve, France

The Gulf of Porto: Calanche of Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve site in France was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1983. The site's vegetation is an outstanding example of scrubland. Seagulls, cormorants, and sea eagles can be found here, while the clear waters, with their islets and inaccessible caves, host a rich and diverse marine life.

<p>The High Coast in Sweden and the Kvarken Archipelago in Finland were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000. The High Coast and the 5,600 islands of the archipelago have been shaped by the combined processes of glaciation, glacial retreat, and the emergence of new land from the sea, as the weight of the glacial ice is removed by melting (“isostatic uplift”). The special feature of the site’s marine realm is that it’s the submarine extension of the landscapes undergoing such uplift. Continual elevation of the land results in inlets becoming progressively cut off from the sea, transforming them into estuaries and ultimately lakes. Meanwhile, shorelines are constantly reshaped, new islands are born offshore, and others become peninsulas as they unite with the mainland.</p>

High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago, Sweden & Finland

The High Coast in Sweden and the Kvarken Archipelago in Finland were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000. The High Coast and the 5,600 islands of the archipelago have been shaped by the combined processes of glaciation, glacial retreat, and the emergence of new land from the sea, as the weight of the glacial ice is removed by melting (“isostatic uplift”). The special feature of the site’s marine realm is that it’s the submarine extension of the landscapes undergoing such uplift.

<p>The Galápagos Islands site in Ecuador was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978. Located in the equatorial Pacific Ocean nearly 1000 km from South America, the Galapagos Islands and the surrounding marine reserve are a unique “living museum and showcase of evolution.” Ongoing seismic and volcanic activity reflect the processes that formed the islands, which together with the extreme isolation, led to the development of unusual animals, such as the land iguana, giant tortoise, and the many types of finch – all of which inspired Charles Darwin’s development of the theory of evolution by natural selection, following his visit in 1835. Pictured here is the Sally lightfoot crab, <em>Grapsus grapsus</em>.</p>

Sally Lightfood Crab, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

The Galápagos Islands site in Ecuador was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978.