ÃŽles Nuageuses

The Îles Nuageuses ( German as " cloudy Islands " ) are an uninhabited group of islands in the Kerguelen Archipelago in the southern Indian Ocean. Politically they belong to the French overseas territory " Terres et australes antarctiques françaises ".

Geography

The Îles Nuageuses lie to the north -west of the Kerguelen archipelago, about 15 km northwest of Grande Terre, and form - apart from the isolated lying Ilot du rendezvous - the most northerly landmass of the archipelago. The archipelago consists of the two main islands of Ile de Croy in the southwest and Île du Roland in the Northeast with 7 sq km area as well as the Îles de Ternay, which are located between the main islands in the 7-km wide Passe de l' Alouette. The highest elevation of the island group is the Pic de l' île de Croy with 518 m, second highest in the Pic Charcot on Île du Roland 500 meters above the sea. The island group is like all the Kerguelen islands of volcanic origin.

Fauna (animal life )

The islands are an important breeding area for many bird species. So here hatch the Kerguelenente (Anas eatoni ), the Rockhopper Penguin ( Eudyptes chrysocome ), the wandering albatross ( Diomedea exulans ) and the Graukopfalbatros ( Thalassarche chrysostoma ). The Îles Nuageuses are part of the nature reserve " Réserve naturelle nationale des Terres australes françaises " and stand out as one of only seven "zones à accès regulations " under particularly strict protection.