Tonga

Oceanía

130

Documented species

Parks and reserves

Dive sites

Explore on the map

Interactive map

Tonga is an archipelago of more than a hundred and seventy islands, only a minority of them inhabited, spread across two alignments: a western one, volcanic and active, where new islands have emerged in recent eruptions, and an eastern one of low limestone islands raised by tectonics. The Vava'u group, with its sheltered channels between islets, forms a maze of calm, transparent water. The Tongan reefs hold hard corals, turtles and reef fish, and the islands keep coastal forests with fruit doves and megapodes. Marine wildlife is the country's great natural heritage: its warm, sheltered waters work as a nursery for one of the humpback whale populations of the southern hemisphere.

The nature of Tonga

National animal: No official national animal; the flying fox is a sacred animal protected by royal tradition

Did you know?

Every southern winter, humpback whales travel thousands of kilometres from the Antarctic seas, where they have fed for months, to the warm waters of Tonga, where they give birth and raise their calves while eating almost nothing. Tonga is one of the very few places in the world where swimming with them is permitted and regulated, under limited licences and minimum distances so as not to disturb the mothers.

Biodiversity profile

PolinesiaDato no disponible con precision en fuentes verificadas consultadas

Climate

•Tropical con estacion seca (Aw), moderado por vientos alisios, mas fresco y seco que otras islas tropicales del Pacifico

Main biomes

•Bosque tropical en islas altas (Tongatapu, Vava'u, Ha'apai)
•Vegetacion costera y de atolon en islas bajas
•Arrecife de coral
•Isla caliza levantada
•Isla volcánica activa
•Bosque costero tropical
•Laguna resguardada
•Manglar
•Acantilado marino

Marine and coastal ecosystems

•Arrecifes de coral (cobertura viva media ~18%, variable segun grupo de islas)
•Aguas de reproduccion de ballenas jorobadas (jul-oct)

Flagship wildlife

•Ballena jorobada (temporada de reproduccion)
•Megapodio de Tonga (malau, ave endemica)
•Murcielago fructivoro de Tonga
•Tortuga marina verde
•Zorro volador tongano
•Megápodo de Tonga
•Tortuga verde
•Tortuga carey
•Paloma frugívora del Pacífico
•Delfín girador
•Loro carirrojo
•Cangrejo de los cocoteros
•Pez napoleón

Notable endemic species

•Megapodio de Tonga o malau (Megapodius pritchardii), endemico y en peligro
•Varias especies de aves y reptiles restringidas a islas especificas del archipielago
•Megápodo de Tonga
•Escinco de Tonga

Notable threatened species

•Megapodio de Tonga (Vulnerable/En Peligro segun fuente, foco de planes de recuperacion de especies)
•Pesqueria de peces de arrecife clasificada de moderada a fuertemente sobreexplotada en varias zonas

Notable protected areas

•Reservas marinas en Vava'u y Ha'apai (avistamiento de ballenas)
•Isla Fonualei y otras islas volcanicas como refugio del malau
•Grupo de islas de Vava'u
•Parque Nacional de Eua
•Reserva Marina de Hakaumama'o
•Isla de Late
•Parque Marino de Ha'apai
•Colonia de zorros voladores de Kolovai

Main conservation threats

•Sobrepesca de peces de arrecife
•Ciclones tropicales
•Cambio climatico y calentamiento del oceano
•Presion humana creciente cerca de las capitales provinciales, correlacionada con menor cobertura coralina

Notable natural phenomena

•Migracion y reproduccion anual de ballenas jorobadas
•Actividad volcanica (Tonga forma parte del Anillo de Fuego del Pacifico)

Conservation

Tonga banned whaling by royal decree in 1978, when the South Pacific humpback population was severely depleted, and it has recovered steadily ever since. The flying fox colony at Kolovai is protected by a traditional rule that reserves these animals to the monarchy.