Île Fourchue

Nature Reserve of Saint Bartholomew
Nature Reserve of Saint Bartholomew
Réserve Naturelle de Saint-Barthélemy
IUCN category II (national park)
Location	Saint Barthélemy
Area	1,200 ha (3,000 acres)
Established	1996
Governing body	Grenat Association
Website	reservenaturellestbarth.com/en

Île Fourchue
Nickname: Five Islands
	Île Fourchue, with Petite Islette at bottom right
	Île Fourchue Île Fourchue Île Fourchue
Geography
Location	Caribbean
Coordinates	17°57′30″N 62°54′00″W / 17.95833°N 62.90000°W
Archipelago	Leeward Islands, Lesser Antilles
Adjacent to	Saint Barthélemy Channel
Area	0.99 km2 (0.38 sq mi)
Highest elevation	103 m (338 ft)
Administration
	France; Saint Barthélemy
Demographics
Population	0
Additional information
Time zone	AST (UTC-4);
Location
Nature Reserve of Saint Bartholomew
Réserve Naturelle de Saint-Barthélemy
IUCN category II (national park)
Location	Saint Barthélemy
Area	1,200 ha (3,000 acres)
Established	1996
Governing body	Grenat Association
Website	reservenaturellestbarth.com/en

Île Fourchue, also known as Île Fourche is an island between Saint-Barthélemy and Saint Martin, belonging to the Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy. The island's inside is privately owned. It is located about 5 km north-west of the island of Saint Barthelemy. Previously, Fourchue Island was called Five Islands because of prominent five peaks visible from the distance. The highest point is 103 meter above sea level. It is situated within Réserve naturelle nationale de Saint-Barthélemy.^[2]

History

Fourchue Island is known as the retreat of Balthazar Biguard, an immigrant from Marseille fleeing the French Revolution, Saint-Barthélemy being at that time Swedish territory. He ended up acquiring Swedish citizenship, living apart from the rest of the world until he died in 1827 at the age of 85. He is buried on this island.^[3]

Important Bird Area

Petite Islette, a 1.3 ha, 33 m high, islet at the western end of Fourchue, has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports a breeding colony of brown boobies. Three species of reptiles are present: the Lesser Antillean iguana (endemic of the Lesser Antilles), Anguilla anole and Caribbean ameiva.^[4]

References

^ "Ile Fourchue". Wikimapia. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
^ A description of the island
^ Tingbrand, Per (2001). Who Was Who in St. Bartholomew during the Swedish epoch? (3th revised ed.). Swedish St. Barthélemy Society. p. 97-98.
^ "Petite Islette". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.