Tuamotus

The Tuamotus are a vast chain of coral atolls and islands in French Polynesia, stretching across the central South Pacific. They are among the world’s largest groups of atolls.

Atoll: A ring-shaped coral reef or island enclosing a lagoon, usually formed around a subsiding volcanic island. Most Tuamotu islands are atolls built around lagoons.
Rangiroa: An atoll in French Polynesia and one of the largest atolls in the world. Its extensive lagoon makes it a prominent example of Tuamotu atoll geography.
Polynesian navigation: The navigation traditions that enabled Polynesian voyagers to cross and settle the Pacific using environmental cues. These skills made settlement of widely scattered Tuamotu atolls possible.
Black pearl: A naturally dark pearl produced chiefly by the black-lipped pearl oyster of the central and western Pacific. Pearl cultivation is a major industry on several Tuamotu atolls.
Sea-level rise: An increase in the average level of the oceans, driven mainly by ocean warming and melting land ice. Low elevation leaves Tuamotu atolls exposed to flooding and erosion as seas rise.
Coral reef: A marine structure formed by coral organisms and other reef-building species. Reef growth creates the low islands and rims that define the Tuamotus.
Fakarava: A coral atoll in the Tuamotus, designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Its protected ecosystems illustrate conservation challenges across inhabited atolls.
European exploration of the Pacific: The voyages by European navigators that mapped and claimed Pacific regions from the sixteenth century onward. European expeditions brought the Tuamotus into recorded European cartography.
Black-lipped pearl oyster: A large pearl oyster native to the Indo-Pacific, cultivated for its dark pearls. Its lagoon populations underpin the Tuamotus’ pearl-farming industry.
Coastal erosion: The wearing away and movement of shorelines by waves, currents, storms, and other processes. Erosion threatens narrow inhabited islets and infrastructure.

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