Most interesting landmarks of Navassa Island
Navassa Island is small, uninhabited island, unincorporated territory of the United States, claimed also by Haiti.
This small Caribbean island is well isolated from the outside world by steep, up to 20 m tall cliffs.
Karst processes are active on this limestone islands. In the central part of the island have formed many sinkholes but in the very south, at the sea – Don’s Cave, which has been formed by freshwater spring and sea waves.
Interesting ecosystem has developed on the island over the last 2 – 5 million years. It has been influenced by guano mining and presence of US military, but otherwise over the last century the island has been little modified.
Here, on 5.4 km² area live four species of lizards which are not met anywhere else in the world:
- Navassa Anole Anolis longiceps
- Cochran’s Croaking Gecko Aristelliger cochranae
- Navassa Galliwasp Celestus badius
- Navassa Dwarf Gecko Sphaerodactylus becki
Wikimedia Commons / public domain
Unfortunately the large, 60 – 136 cm long iguana Cyclura onchiopsis is extinct. Extinct is also Navassa Curly-tailed Lizard Leiocephalus eremitus and Navassa Dwarf Boa (Tropidophis bucculentus).
Besides the reptiles this island has also endemic species of insects and plants. Interesting and somewhat sad is the only remaining palm of endemic variety Pseudopheonix sargentti saonae var. navassana.
