Wallis - Futuna
ID
822
Author(s)
Draft prepared by J. Hales. Pending further revision and additional content.
Countries
France
Major Habitat Type
Oceanic Islands
Drainages flowing into
Pacific Ocean
Main rivers to other water bodies
Wallis Island includes a number of crater lakes, the largest of which is Lake Lalolalo. Others include Lake Kikila, Lano, Lanutuli, Lanumaha, Lanutavake, and Alofivai. There are also short rivers and streams on Futuna. Alofi contains no natural freshwater sources.
Description
Boundaries
The Wallis and Futuna Islands are located in the South Pacific roughly 2500 km north of New Zealand, 400 km west of Samoa, and 500 km northeast of Fiji. The ecoregion includes the Wallis Archipelago (comprised of Wallis and its surrounding islands), and the Hoorn Islands (comprised of Futuna and Alofi).
Topography
The islands are volcanic in origin and fringed by reefs. The largest peak is Mt. Puke (500 m) on the island of Futuna.
Terrestrial habitats
This ecoregion falls within the Fiji tropical moist forests [OC0105] (WWF 2001).
Description of endemic fishes
Sicyopus sasali is endemic to two small streams on the island of Futuna. It is listed as Endangered according to the IUCN Redlist (Keith 2012).
Justification for delineation
Wallis-Futuna was defined on the basis of distinctive (endemic or near-endemic) fish faunas.
References
- World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (2001) \Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World\ "<"http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial_nt.html">"
- Keith, P. (2012) \Smilosicyopus sasali\ "<"www.iucnredlist.org">" (May 10, 2013)