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Moscos Islands

Coordinates: 14°07′30″N 97°48′15″E / 14.12500°N 97.80417°E / 14.12500; 97.80417
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Moscos Islands
Island group
Mouth of the Dawei River. The South Moscos can be seen on the upper left side. Photo NASA
Mouth of the Dawei River. The South Moscos can be seen on the upper left side. Photo NASA
Moscos Islands is located in Myanmar
Moscos Islands
Moscos Islands
Coordinates: 14°7′N 97°48′E / 14.117°N 97.800°E / 14.117; 97.800
CountryMyanmar
RegionTanintharyi
Area
 • Total49.19 km2 (18.99 sq mi)
Elevation
352 m (1,155 ft)
Population
 • Total0
Time zoneUTC+6:30 (Myanmar Standard Time)

The Moscos Islands are an island chain in the Andaman Sea off the northern coast of the Tanintharyi Region of southern Burma.

The islands are administered from the Dawei District of the Taninthayi Division. No tourism is allowed on any of the islands.

Geography

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This 70 km long island chain is located on average around 15 km from the shore.[1] The total combined area of dry land on the Moscos Islands is 49.19 km2.

The islands are uninhabited, but fishermen from nearby coastal locations stay in temporary settlements on certain islands during the dry season. Traditionally these people have been engaging in fishing, timber felling and collection of sea turtle eggs, swiftlet nests and forest products.[2]

Ecology

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Generally all islands are covered in thick forest and they rise steeply from rocky shores. The small steep rocky islets are important as nesting places for the edible-nest swiftlets (Aerodramus fuciphagus). The beaches are breeding grounds for different species of sea turtles. In 1924, during colonial times, the whole archipelago was declared a game preserve and in 1927 a wildlife sanctuary; even then local people went to the islands to collect large numbers of turtle eggs.

Presently the whole island group is a protected area, the Moscos Islands Wildlife Sanctuary. Officially there is a limit to the number of eggs and swiftlet nests that are allowed to be collected.[3]

Islands

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There are four distinct groups or clusters of islands in the chain:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Prostar Sailing Directions 2005 India & Bay of Bengal Enroute By National Geospatial-intelligence Agency
  2. ^ Moscos Islands Wildlife Sanctuary Archived 2008-12-01 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Ramsar - Burma Archived 2011-08-25 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Marine Protected Areas in Southeast Asia Archived 2011-12-13 at the Wayback Machine
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14°07′30″N 97°48′15″E / 14.12500°N 97.80417°E / 14.12500; 97.80417