List of species on Caroline Island
Species recorded on Caroline Island, one of the Line Islands in the south-central Pacific Ocean:
Although it remains unclear whether or not the coconut crab is endangered, Caroline Island hosts a substantial population of the arthropod.
Flora
Trees
Groves of Pisonia grandis cover the central portions of many islets.
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Although not native, coconut palms were planted on many of Caroline's islets in the 1920s and earlier, but are now largely gone.
Shrubs
Large stretches of Heliotropium foertherianum shrub cover many of Caroline's islets.
Herbs
- Achyranthes canscens
- Boerhavia repens
- Heliotropium anomalum
- Ipomoea macrantha
- Ipomoea violacea
- Laportea ruderalis
- Lepidium bidentatum
- Lepturus repens
- Lygodium microphyllum
- Phyllanthus amarus
- Phymatosorus scolopendria
- Portulaca lutea
- Psilotum nudum
- Sida fallax
- Tacca leontopetaloides
- Tribulus cistoides
Fauna
Nesting seabirds
- Black noddy (Anous minutus)
- Blue-grey noddy (Procelsterna cerulea) (Kepler)
- Brown booby (Sula leucogaster)
- Brown noddy (Anous stolidus)
- Great frigatebird (Fregata minor)
- Lesser frigatebird (Fregata ariel)
- Masked booby (Sula dactylatra)
- Red-footed booby (Sula sula)
- Red-tailed tropicbird (Phaethon rubricauda) (Kepler)
Caroline Island is a major nesting site for the sooty tern.
- Sooty tern (Onychoprion fuscata)
- White tern (Gygis alba)
Other birds
- Bristle-thighed curlew (Numenius tahitiensis)
The bristle-thighed curlew is among the vulnerable species which occasionally visit Caroline Atoll.
- Lesser golden-plover (Pluvialis dominica) (Kepler)
- Long-tailed cuckoo (Eudynamis taitensis)
- Pacific golden plover (Pluvialis fulva)
- Reef heron (Egretta sacra) (Kepler)
- Ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres) (Kepler)
- Sanderling (Crocethia alba) (Kepler)
- Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus ponapensis)[1]
- Wandering tattler (Tringa incana)
Lizards
- Azure-tailed skink (Emoia cyanura) (Kepler)
- Emoia impar (Kepler)
- Moth skink (Lipinia noctua) (Kepler)
- Mourning gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris) (Kepler)
- Polynesian gecko (Gehyra oceanica) (Kepler)
Six species of lizards, including Cryptoblepharus poecilopleurus, have been noted on Caroline Island.
- Snake-eyed skink (Cryptoblepharus poecilopleurus) (Kepler)
Mammals
- Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops gilli) (Kepler)
- Polynesian rat (Rattus exulans) (Kepler)
Turtles
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The green sea turtle is believed to nest on the beaches of Caroline Island.
- Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas)
Crabs
- Coconut crab (Birgus largo)
- Red spotted crab (Carpilius maculatus) (Kepler)
- Scarlet crab (Cornobita perlatus) (Kepler)
Polychaetes
- Calcareous tubeworm (Serpula tetratropia)[2]
Notes
- "Short-eared Owl ssp ponapensis - Asio flammeus ponapensis". Observation.org. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
- P.A. Hutchings (ed) (1984). "Harry A. ten Hove (1984). Towards a phylogeny in serpulids (Annelida; Polychaeta)". Proceedings of the first International Polychaete Conference. Sydney: The Linnean Society of New South Wales. pp. 181–196. ISBN 0-9590535-0-6.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
References
- Kepler, A.K.; C.B. Kepler (February 1994). "The natural history of the Caroline Atoll, Southern Line Islands". Atoll Research Bulletin. 397–398. Archived from the original on 2007-03-11.
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