Coulman Island
Coulman Island is an ice-covered island in the Ross Sea, located 14 km (8.7 mi) southeast of Cape Jones, Victoria Land, Antarctica. It is 33.3 km (20.7 mi) long, 14.8 km (9.2 mi) wide and 1,998 m (6,555 ft) in elevation. Emperor penguins inhabit this island. Coulman Island lies within the boundaries of Ross Dependency, which is claimed by New Zealand; a claim unrecognized by most other states. It was discovered in 1841 by Sir James Clark Ross who named it for his father-in-law, Thomas Coulman.[1] A notable landmark of this island is Cape Anne, the south-easternmost point of the island, so named by Sir James Clark Ross for his wife. Cape Wadworth is the northernmost point of the island.
 | |
  Coulman Island Location in Antarctica | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Antarctica |
| Coordinates | 73°29′S 169°45′E |
| Length | 33.3 km (20.69 mi) |
| Width | 14.8 km (9.2 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 1,998 m (6555 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Administered under the Antarctic Treaty System | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Uninhabited |
The island is composed of several overlapping shield volcanoes that form part of the Hallett Volcanic Province of the McMurdo Volcanic Group.[2] A 5 km (3.1 mi) wide and 700 m (2,300 ft) deep caldera called the Hawkes Heights can be found on the south end of the island.
Important Bird Area (IBA)
The island is currently recognized as an important bird area because it holds a huge super-colony of emperor penguins and is the largest colony of this species in the world. However, scientists speculate that this colony could hold more birds than what they have estimated. More than 26,000 chicks have been counted during the 2018-2019 breeding season indicating that the number of adults ranged from 30,000 to 35,000 breeding pairs. The sheer numbers of penguins on the island had also led scientists to think that there have been potentially larger emperor penguin super-colonies that may have existed in the past before being wiped out during the last ice age.
See also
- Composite Antarctic Gazetteer
- List of Antarctic islands south of 60° S
- List of volcanoes in Antarctica
- Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR)
- Territorial claims in Antarctica
References
- U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Coulman Island
- Riffenburgh, Beau (2007). Encyclopedia of the Antarctic. 1. Taylor & Francis. p. 639. ISBN 0-415-97024-5.
External links
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Geological Survey document: "Coulman Island". (content from the Geographic Names Information System)
