East Rennell is the southern part of Rennell Island in the Solomon Islands. This area is named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rennell is the largest raised coral atoll in the world, and the region around Lake Tegano in East Rennell is home to many species of plants and animals found only there.
In 2013, the World Heritage Committee added East Rennell to the list of World Heritage sites in danger because logging activities posed a risk to the area’s special value.
Site
Rennell is located in the Western Pacific and is the southernmost island in the Solomon Islands. It measures approximately 86 kilometers by 15 kilometers (53 miles by 9 miles). Rennell is the largest coral atoll in the world that has been raised above sea level, covering an area of 37,000 hectares (91,000 acres). Most of the island is covered by thick forests. At the center of the southern end of the island is Lake Tegano (also called Te Nggano), which was once the lagoon of the atoll. The lake's surface is at sea level, and its water is brackish. The lake is surrounded by cliffs and is surrounded by several small limestone islands. East Rennell, named a World Heritage Site in 1998, is located at the southern end of the island. This site includes Lake Tegano, the land around it, and the marine areas extending three nautical miles from the island. The area remains untouched but is likely to be damaged by cyclones. It is described as an important place for scientific study.
History
The island is home to about 800 people who live in four villages near Lake Tegano. These people grow their own food and fish for their daily needs, using the forest and lake resources. In 2007, a plan was created with the help of the islanders to manage the area. This plan respects their right to continue their traditional customs and lifestyle. Experts from IUCN say that when local people have control over their land, it can help protect the environment better than if a faraway government managed it.
Flora and fauna
The island has thick forests that serve as homes for many bird species. Logging activities happening on the western part of the island, outside the protected area, are harming the bird population by reducing the forest areas the birds depend on. Because of this, in 2013, UNESCO added East Rennell to the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger. Scientists have recorded 50 bird species on the island, 21 of which are found only there. The site is recognized by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports populations of several bird species, including silver-capped fruit doves, yellow-bibbed lories, Rennell parrots, green pygmy parrots, cardinal myzomelas, Rennell gerygones, Rennell fantails, Melanesian flycatchers, Rennell shrikebills, bare-eyed and Rennell white-eyes, and Rennell starlings.
One notable reptile is Crocker's sea snake, a species found only in Lake Tegano and nowhere else in the world. The island is home to 11 bat species (one of which is endemic), 27 land snail species (seven of which are endemic), and about 730 insect species, many of which are endemic. Over 300 species of diatoms and algae, a few of which are endemic, contribute to the island's diverse plant life.