Siau Island
Siau ( Indonesian: Pulau Siau [ Shau ] ) is a small island in the Sangihe Archipelago. It is located about 130 km off the northern tip of Sulawesi in the Celebes Sea and has an area of 125 km ². The densely populated island had in the year 2005 38.820 inhabitants and a population density of 311 inhabitants / km ². The island forms a separate administrative district ( kabupaten ) Kepulauan Siau Tagulandang Biaro and belongs to the province of North Sulawesi. Besides tourism, the export of nutmeg is the most important economic sector. Other exports are copra, cloves and squid.
Geography
The landmark of Siau is the stratovolcano Karangetang ( Api Siau ) with the 1,784 m high north peak and the 1,827 m high south peak. The Karangetang is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia with more than 40 eruptions since 1675th during an outbreak in 1974, much of the infrastructure of the island was destroyed. 1992 seven people were killed and 1997 three people died. During the outbreak in August 2007 564 residents were evacuated from three villages.
History
1584 Portuguese Jesuits established a missionary post on the former Kingdom of Siau. From 1587 Siau was frequently attacked and plundered by Ternaten. 1593 sailed the Raja of Siau to Manila in order to gain the Kingdom of Spain as a protecting power. 1605 sales, which was established in 1602 Dutch East India Company (VOC ), the Portuguese from Maluku province. Alarmed by the Dutch success the Spaniards built their own fort on Ternate and chose Siau as a regular stop off point on the trade route to Maluku. 1607 formed the Dutch and Ternaten a formal alliance on Siau raided several villages in 1612. The Spaniards were able to hold on to 1677 Siau until it succeeded the Dutch and Ternaten to completely conquer the island. The imprisoned King of Siau submitted to then Kaicili Sibori, the Sultan of Ternate, and became a vassal of the VOC. Siau was the first of the Sangihe Islands, which was completely Christianized in the 19th century. 1945 ended the rule of the Dutch on Siau.
Fauna
In Siau some very rare animal species are endemic, including the Siau Scops Owl ( Otus siaoensis ), which has been known only from one specimen from the 1866 and discovered only in 2005 and 2008 described Siau tarsier ( Tarsius tumpara ), the most vulnerable to the primate in the world counts. The nature on Siau is under tremendous pressure from the growing population and also by the eruptions of Karangetang pose a constant threat. There are no conservation areas and the forested area has shrunk to 50 ha.