Louisiade Archipelago Explained

Louisiade Archipelago
Coordinates:	-11.2°N 153°W
Total Islands:	300+
Area Km2:	1871.1
Country:	Papua New Guinea
Country Admin Divisions Title:	Province
Country Admin Divisions:	Milne Bay Province
Country Largest City:	Bwagaoia on Misima Island
Country Largest City Population:	2680
Population:	47000
Population As Of:	2014

The Louisiade Archipelago is a string of ten larger volcanic islands frequently fringed by coral reefs, and 90 smaller coral islands in Papua New Guinea.

It is located 200 km southeast of New Guinea, stretching over more than 160km (100miles) and spread over an ocean area of 26000km2 between the Solomon Sea to the north and the Coral Sea to the south. The aggregate land area of the islands is about 1871km2, with Vanatinai (Tagula) being the largest.

Rogeia, Samarai and Sariba lie closest to New Guinea, while Misima, Vanatinai, and Rossel islands lie further east.

History

The islands were discovered by a Spanish expedition led by Luis Váez de Torres in 1606, that was part of the Fernandez de Quiros fleet which had sailed from South America in search of Australia. The Torres expedition visited various islands including Basilaki Island, which he named San Buenaventura in July 1606. It is possible that Malay and Chinese sailors also visited the islands earlier. More than a century later, in 1768, Louis Antoine de Bougainville visited the islands and named them for Louis XV, the king of France. Visits were also paid by Admiral Bruni d'Entrecasteaux in 1793 and Captain Owen Stanley in 1849.

The 1942 Battle of Coral Sea was fought nearby, after Japanese occupation in the same year. The Deboyne Islands were the site of the 1942 Raids on Deboyne.

Rain forests

The islands have a moist tropical climate, and are largely covered with tropical moist broadleaf forests. The Louisiade Archipelago rain forests form a distinct ecoregion, and are home to a number of endemic species, including several endemic trees (in genera Pandanus, Diospyros, and Hopea), as well as five endemic frog species, two endemic lizard species, and five endemic bird species.

Government

The archipelago is divided into the Local Level Government (LLG) areas Bwanabwana Rural (western part, with Basilaki), Louisiade Rural (central part, with Misima), and Yaleyamba (eastern part, with Rossel and Vanatinai islands). The LLG areas are part of Samarai-Murua District of Milne Bay. The seat of the Louisiade Rural LLG is Bwagaoia on Misima Island, the population center of the archipelago.^[1] The seat of the Yaleyamba is changed every couple of years between Rambuso and Jingo (Rossell).The seat of the Bwanabwana was Samarai from the Louisiade archipelago, but was recently transferred to the mainland of Papua New Guinea to the city of Alotau.

Islands

The Louisiade Archipelago consists of the following island groups and islands:^[2]

Island	Capital	Other Cities	Area	Population
km^2	sq mi
			2.49disp=tableNaNdisp=table	122
			1.42disp=tableNaNdisp=table	112
			1.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			5.54disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			2.93disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.26disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.35disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			85.1disp=tableNaNdisp=table	3276
			7.45disp=tableNaNdisp=table	264
			2.43disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.09disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.42disp=tableNaNdisp=table	121
			0.36disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.59disp=tableNaNdisp=table	18
			10.15disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			3.66disp=tableNaNdisp=table	170
			0.38disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			7.8disp=tableNaNdisp=table	595
			0.1disp=tableNaNdisp=table	226
			0.05disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Other	Burnett	Ehiki, Panua Keikeisa	1.78disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.47disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.93disp=tableNaNdisp=table	183
			0.81disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.69disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.57disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			30.55disp=tableNaNdisp=table	456
			0.5disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			2.11disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.79disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			4.04disp=tableNaNdisp=table	708
			0.36disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.05disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.4disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Ululina	Ululina		0.59disp=tableNaNdisp=table	5
			1.54disp=tableNaNdisp=table	514
			0.76disp=tableNaNdisp=table	16
			0.31disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.37disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			5.06disp=tableNaNdisp=table	30
			0.76disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.14disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.08disp=tableNaNdisp=table	20
			0.04disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.51disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.2disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Other	Kolavia	Madiboiboi, Lutmatavi	0.4disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.52disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.51disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.68disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			0.08disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			41.9disp=tableNaNdisp=table	2700
			0.01disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.5disp=tableNaNdisp=table	20
			0.36disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			30.32disp=tableNaNdisp=table	2080
			7.72disp=tableNaNdisp=table	600
			0.06disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.14disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			2.58disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.96disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.32disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.75disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.42disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.66disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.2disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.34disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.82disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			0.15disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.43disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			1.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.51disp=tableNaNdisp=table5	0
			0.1disp=tableNaNdisp=table5	0
			0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table7	0
			0.17disp=tableNaNdisp=table2	0
			0.2disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Skelton	Watts	11.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1200
			0.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.09disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.11disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.32disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.72disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.61disp=tableNaNdisp=table	105
			0.06disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.15disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Naruaruari	Koialia, Waiaku, Digaigaia	3.56disp=tableNaNdisp=table	375
	Samoa	Tubetube	2.61disp=tableNaNdisp=table	245
	Gegadali	Taeaknabululu, Kwaraiwa	2.56disp=tableNaNdisp=table	475
	Dawson		2disp=tableNaNdisp=table	245
			1.36disp=tableNaNdisp=table	245
			0.25disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.05disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.3disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Misima Islands			215disp=tableNaNdisp=table	19330
			0.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.26disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			214.5disp=tableNaNdisp=table	19330
			0.13disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			99.92disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1764
			0.25disp=tableNaNdisp=table8	34
			0.23disp=tableNaNdisp=table4	1
			3.55disp=tableNaNdisp=table6	395
			0.13disp=tableNaNdisp=table3	0
			78disp=tableNaNdisp=table	527
			0.01disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			1.66disp=tableNaNdisp=table	400
			16disp=tableNaNdisp=table	407
			4.3disp=tableNaNdisp=table	617
			0.17disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Awa	Atuatua	2.86disp=tableNaNdisp=table	617
			0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.49disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.47disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Rossel Islands			293.8disp=tableNaNdisp=table	5100
			0.18disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.06disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1
Other	Heron		0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	7
			0.01disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			292.5disp=tableNaNdisp=table	5000
			1.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	92
			262.1disp=tableNaNdisp=table	8200
	Nasa Rua Rua		0.5disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			4.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	30
			0.16disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Ranger station		0.26disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			9.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1004
			0.04disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.05disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.35disp=tableNaNdisp=table	66
			0.29disp=tableNaNdisp=table	460
	Evennett Mansion		0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table2	1
			0.17disp=tableNaNdisp=table	19
			0.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1
			0.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.02disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.92disp=tableNaNdisp=table	20
			0.21disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Igwali	Naba Riaria, Ga-Uri	1.47disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
	Kui		0.19disp=tableNaNdisp=table	5
			3.06disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			23.21disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1880
		Oba, Gotai, Gadogadowa, Sekuku, Dulauna, Tegerauna	101.3disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1890
			1.71disp=tableNaNdisp=table	15
			0.9disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			3.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	500
	Yokowa	Habani	106disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1883
			0.11disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Maragum		0.55disp=tableNaNdisp=table	17
			0.72disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
			3disp=tableNaNdisp=table	190
	Kibou		0.42disp=tableNaNdisp=table	10
Castori Islets			0.18disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.15disp=tableNaNdisp=table	1
			0.05disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Other			0.8disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			2.08disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.86disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.8disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Vanatinai Islands			831.6disp=tableNaNdisp=table	3360
			0.07disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.86disp=tableNaNdisp=table	102
			0.12disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			830disp=tableNaNdisp=table	3257
			0.55disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
Wari Islands	Wari		3.85disp=tableNaNdisp=table	926
			0.22disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.17disp=tableNaNdisp=table	100
			0.22disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	100
Other			0.15disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.41disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.03disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.01disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
			0.34disp=tableNaNdisp=table	0
	Wari		2.27disp=tableNaNdisp=table	726
Louisiade Archipelago		Samarai, Rossel	1871.1disp=tableNaNdisp=table	47000

See also

• List of islands of Papua New Guinea
• Louisiade Rural LLG

External links

• Louisiade Archipelago . 17 . x.
  • Eusoils.jrc.it: detailed geology/soils map (1:1.000.000)
• Louisiades.net: Information and advice for yachts and travellers visiting the Louisiade Archipelago islands

Notes and References

1. http://www.pngec.gov.pg/ElectionInfo2007/PollSched-MilneBay.pdf{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
2. Web site: Archived copy . 2006-01-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060102052853/http://www.g3kma.dsl.pipex.com/067-076%20oceania%20list.doc . 2006-01-02 .