Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Torres Strait tŏrˈĭz, –rĭs [key], channel, c.95 mi (153 km) wide, between New Guinea and Cape York Peninsula of Australia. It connects the Arafura and Coral seas. The strait is shallow, with man...

(Encyclopedia) triggerfish, any of several species of tropical reef fishes with laterally compressed bodies, heavy scales, and tough skins. They are named for the mechanism of the three spines of the dorsal fin: whe...

(Encyclopedia) Spratly Islands, group of about 100 low islands and coral reefs in the central South China Sea, intersecting busy shipping lanes. The whole group is claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, and parts ar...

(Encyclopedia) damselfish, common name for members of the large family Pomacentridae, marine fishes of tropical waters. Common in the West Indies and along the Florida coasts are the sergeant-major, named for its ve...

(Encyclopedia) Louisiade Archipelago lo͞oēˌzēădˈ, –ädˈ [key], SW Pacific, part of Papua New Guinea. The archipelago comprises c.10 volcanic islands and numerous coral reefs. The major islands are Tagula (t...

(Encyclopedia) Paracel Islands päräsĕlˈ [key], Chin. Xisha, group of low coral islands and reefs in the South China Sea, c.175 mi (280 km) SE of Hainan island. They are rich in guano and are underlain by oil dep...

(Encyclopedia) Juan de Nova Island hwän də nōˈvə [key], 1.7 sq mi (4.4 sq km), in the Mozambique Channel, Indian Ocean, between Madagascar and Mozambique. A possession of France administered by a high commissio...

(Encyclopedia) Funafuti fo͞onäfo͞oˈtē [key], capital and chief atoll of Tuvalu, S Pacific. It comprises 30 islets of a reef 13 mi (21 km) long, with a land area of c.1 sq mi (2.6 sq km). The islet of Fongafale ...

(Encyclopedia) Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument: see National Parks and Monuments, tablenational parks and monuments, table. ...

(Encyclopedia) Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, c.490,000 sq mi (1,260,000 sq km), central Pacific Ocean; est. 2009. The monument comprises the waters and reefs surrounding seven islands and atolls, ...