Archipelago of the Comoros

The archipelago of the Comoros form a whole of islands located at the south-east of the Africa, the east of the Tanzania and the North-West of Madagascar. They are divided between an independent country, the Union of the Comoros, and Mayotte, a French community of overseas . According to the sources, the small island of the Bench of the Geyser and the islands Glorieuses can or not be attached to the archipelago.

Geography

The archipelago of the Comoros consists of volcanic islands. The Comoros are in the Canal of Mozambique in the North-West of Madagascar and vis-a-vis the Mozambique. These ic islands Volcano, as certain solid masses of the north of Madagascar were formed with the tertiary and the Quaternaire. the karthala is one of the largest crater of the world.

Although disputed, the assumption of a Not hot above which “would have ravelled” according to a south-eastern trajectory, the North-West then north-eastern, south-western, the Somali plate could give an account of the gradually decreasing ages towards the west of these volcanic solid masses. The island of Mayotte is oldest of these currently emerged islands and would have undergone three phases of volcanicity between 15 and 0,5 My. The most recent island is the island of the Grande Comore, and its volcano, the Karthala, is always active there. The older the islands are, the more they underwent an intense morphogenesis. The aggressiveness of the climate, the low permeability of the grounds, the aptitude of materials for being mobilized by streamings amplified by the deforestation and the low level of agricultural technicality, support the Morphogenèse. It appears in particular by the scouring of the surface horizon of the ground, by gullyings, falls, landslides and the formation of `padzas' (bad grounds). The four islands, which cover a surface of 2236 km ², are:

  • Large Comore (or gazidja in Shikomori)
  • Anjouan (or Ndzouani)
  • Mohéli (or Mwali)
  • Mayotte (or Maore) which is itself made up of two principal islands:
    • Large Ground
    • Small ground
    • the small island Bouzy

Two small islands are, according to the sources and the times, attached to the archipelago:

  • the Bench of the Geyser, a reef of 8 out of 5 km broad, immersed with low tide, located at 130 km in Northern North is of Mayotte. He is asserted by Madagascar and France.
  • the Glorious Îles were attached administratively to the archipelago before 1975, and are geologically speaking, belonging to the archipelago.

Moreover, between Madagascar and Mayotte, there exists the bench of Leven , an old island now submerged.

Affinity between the Comorian flora and the Malagasy flora is certain. The presence of the bench of Leven, length of a hundred kilometers in the extreme North-West of Madagascar between the Mountain of Amber and the archipelago could explain this affinity partly. Indeed, this bench on tabular aspect presents coralligenous sediments being able to be allotted to the presence of a coral Récif during the Glaciation of Würm |Callmander, M.W. 2002. Biogeography and systematic of Pandanaceae of the Western Indian Ocean. Thesis of doctorate, University of Neuchâtel, 253 p.

Each island testifies to a phenomenon of volcanic activity different which is an activity of the hawaïen type to long fluid basaltic castings, then another from Strombolian type with cones and projections from lapilli as in the solid mass from the Grid into Large Comore and finally, an activity explosive with lakes of craters, known as ultra Vulcanian or phréato-magmatic.

History

See also: History of the Comoros, History of Mayotte, History of the Comoros (country)

The first traces of settlement date from the 8th century. Since then, of very many ethnos groups crossed and mixed among which populations of origins Bantou E, bushimen, indonésienne, Arabic, Portuguese, Frenchwoman, Indian. The Islam appears there at the 13th century with the arrival of a population Persian of Chiraz. These islands formed with Zanzibar, Pemba, Lamou… and the cities of the coast Kenya and Tanzania a unit of culture prosperous Swahili E and of fame, living trade of slaves, Ivoire and other African goods intended for the Eastern markets. During this time, the capacity is with the hands of numerous the Sultan S local fighters .

By exploring all this area, the Portuguese found and approached the islands of the Moon ( K' me R in Arabic means the moon ) in 1505.
Between 1841 and 1912, the French subjected the islands by rocambolesques stories mixing, as with Madagascar, act of war, treasons and stories of love. They succeeded in establishing Protectorat S then a colony directed by the general governor of Madagascar. Whereas labor became increasingly expensive with the Réunion, the Comoros, forgotten by the central administration, offered to the colonists and to the colonial companies (like Bambao) of the prospects and a not very expensive labor in the plantations for plants with perfumes and Vanille.

In 1946, the islands are not any more attached administratively to Madagascar and form for the first time of their history a linked and recognized administrative entity (TOM). For more information to consult the heading history of the articles on each island or that of the Union of the Comoros

Climate

The Archipelago of the Comoros benefits from a tropical Climat maritime. It is characterized by weak annual temperature variations day laborers, around 26° with the sea level and by abundant Précipitation S: 2679  mm per annum. The average temperature of sea water is of 25  °C.

Two seasons ago in the Comoros: the hot and wet season in a flow of the North-West from November to April and the season dries from May to October. One will however note a climate appreciably hotter and dryness with Mayotte. The climate is also characterized by important local variations of temperature and precipitation according to altitude, the relief and the exposure. Annual precipitations vary thus by places from 1.000 to 6.000 mm and the absolute minima reach 0°C at the top of the Karthala.

The hot and wet season is caused by a vast depressionary zone which extends on most of the Indian Ocean and central Africa. This depression supports the gusts of winds and the Cyclone S. the last cyclone is " Gafilo " who passed close to the Comoros the making on March 5th, 2004 of large property damages. During the hot and wet season, it can rain until 200  mm in 24  h.

The dry season is calmer. The depression moves towards the continent of Asia (it is the Mousson, the wind comes from south-east) and a Anticyclone is created above the Comoros. That does not prevent from having some gusts of wind but their intensity is quite less than at the time of the hot season.

The two winds related to each of the two seasons are called the Kashkasi and the Kusi .

Environment

Fauna and the Comorian flora are related with that of Madagascar, but because of their relative insulation, they have certain specificities. Moreover, certain rare or very rare species become continue with a food like the dugong with Mayottes. Of this fact the local authorities sought to create protection zones, the marine Parc of Saziley was in 1991 tandisque the marine Parc of Mohéli at summer created in 1999 in partnership with village associations. This last exemplary initiative received the Prix of the Initiative Ecuador by the the United Nations.

Fauna

See also: Fauna of the Comoros

These islands have, like the other islands of the area, of many endemic species . Some one of the most remarkable species.

  • Dogfish of Livingston: very large Bat endemic diurnal and frugivorous.

  • Maki : small Lemur (Kima in Shikomori)
  • Scolopendre: millepede poisonous which can reach 25 centimetres length
  • Coelacanth: osseous fish which one knows fossils of more than 300 million years
  • Gecko: small Lizard which nourishes insects and which one finds fixed on the ceiling of the houses.
  • Dolphin with nozzle: a colony is visible, almost the every day in morning, of the beach of Itsandra, near Moroni, but there exists about it much of different.
  • green Tortoise: Especially on Mohéli and Mayotte where they still come to lay.
  • Pitches: resemble a Hérisson but of the family of the raccoons ( Tanrec Ecaudatus , originating in Madagascar)

One will find in the Comoros no large animal of Africa, however very near: (elephant, Giraffe, Lion, Crocodile, Zebra or Antelope).

Flora

See also: Flora of the Comoros

There exists in the many Comoros Écosystème S tropical which depend mainly on altitude. One finds there many plants tropical of which good numbers are endemic. Like the majority of the islands, the diversity of the local flora undergoes two pressures, on the one hand on the reduction in spaces available by the reductions of the Biotope S due to the invasion of human on zones formerly more wild and on the other hand to the intrusion of invading exotic plants the such Goyavier S. the flora was studied little, of the efforts are however made by France with Mayotte to fill the gaps. The efforts for safeguarding are however very insufficient to preserve the richest zones, and of the upheavals of the biotopes are to be envisaged for the years to come.

Policy

The archipelago of the Comoros is divided between:
  • the Union of the Comoros, sovereign country formed of the three islands of Large Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli
  • Mayotte is a departmental community French and should become an overseas department in 2010. This island is asserted by the Union of the Comoros, but chose to remain French on several occasions at the time of referendums.

The general meeting of the United Nations condemned until 1994 the maintenance of the French presence to Mayotte. However, the safety advice of the United Nations passed forever of resolution condemning France.

The African Union considered to be illegal the French presence with Mayotte.

Mayotte belongs to the Pays and overseas territories of the European Union. It should become a Région ultra-peripheral of the European Union at the time of its departmentalization.

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