View source for Earth:Redonda

{{Short description|Island in Antigua and Barbuda}}
{{hatnote|Not to be confused with Rodondo Island in Australia or [[Earth:Redonda Rock|Redonda Rock]] in the Galapagos.}}
{{Infobox islands
| name             = Redonda
| image_name       = File:Redonda_by_sea_1,_2023.jpg
| image_caption    = The island of Redonda, viewed from the south in 2023
| map = 
| map_caption = 
| nickname         = 
| location         = Caribbean Sea
| pushpin_map             = Antigua and Barbuda#Lesser Antilles#Caribbean
| pushpin_label           = 
| pushpin_label_position  = 
| pushpin_map_alt         = 
| pushpin_relief          = 1
| pushpin_map_caption     = 
| coordinates      = {{coord|16|56|18|N|62|20|42|W|display=inline,title}}
| archipelago      = Leeward Islands, Lesser Antilles
| total_islands    = 
| major_islands    = 
| area_km2         = 
| length_km        = 1.6
| width_km         = 0.5
| highest_mount    = 
| elevation_m      = 296
| population       = 0
| population_as_of = 
| density_km2      = 
| ethnic_groups    = 
| country          = {{ATG}}
| timezone1        = AST
| utc_offset1      = -4
| timezone1_DST    = 
| utc_offset1_DST  = 
| website          = 
| additional_info  = 
| footnotes       = 
|country_admin_divisions_title_1=Parish|country_admin_divisions_1=Saint John Parish, Antigua and Barbuda<ref name="laws.gov.ag"/>}}
'''Redonda''' is an uninhabited Caribbean [[Earth:Island|island]] that is a part of Antigua and Barbuda,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ab.gov.ag|title=Government of Antigua and Barbuda|website=www.ab.gov.ag|access-date=11 July 2017}}</ref> in the Leeward Islands, [[Place:West Indies|West Indies]]. The island is about {{convert|1|mi|km|disp=flip}} long, {{convert|0.3|mi|km|1|disp=flip}} wide, and is {{convert|971|ft|m|disp=flip}} high at its highest point.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiguanice.com/v2/travel.php?cat=90|title=Antigua and Barbuda: Redonda|website=www.antiguanice.com|access-date=11 July 2017}}</ref>

This small island lies between the islands of [[Earth:Nevis|Nevis]] and Montserrat, {{convert|56.2|km|mi}} southwest of Antigua. Redonda is closer to Montserrat than to any other island; it is located at {{convert|22.5|km|mi}} northwest of Montserrat, and {{convert|32|km|mi}} southeast of Nevis.

Redonda is home to vast numbers of sea birds, and the island was an important source of [[Earth:Guano|guano]] before artificial fertilisers started to be mass-produced. Guano-mining operations started in the 1860s and ceased after the start of [[Social:World War I|World War I]]. During these mining operations a few buildings and other installations were put in place on the island, and some physical remnants of that phase in its history are still visible.

"Redonda" is the female form of the [[Social:Spanish language|Spanish language]] adjective meaning "round". In 1493, on his second voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus saw the island and named it "Santa María la Redonda" (the name in the Spanish language means "Saint Mary the Round").

The island was annexed by the Antiguan Parish of Saint John on 26 March 1872.<ref name="laws.gov.ag">{{Cite web |url-status=live |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326022109/http://laws.gov.ag/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/cap-373.pdf |title=The Redonda Annexation Act |language=en |date=26 March 1872 |website=laws.gov.ag |access-date=21 August 2023 |url=http://laws.gov.ag/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/cap-373.pdf}}</ref>

==Description==
[[File:Antigua and Barbuda map.png|thumb|225px|left|Antigua and Barbuda map with Redonda (lower left).]]
[[File:Redonda west cliffs.JPG|thumb|225px|left|The west (leeward) coast of Redonda consists almost entirely of sheer cliffs many hundreds of feet high, 2011]]

At a distance, Redonda appears as if it were one very large rock. It is the remnant of an ancient extinct [[Earth:Volcano|volcano]]. The land rises from sea level mostly as sheer cliffs, especially on the leeward (west) side. At the top of the island there is a relatively flat but tilted area of grassland which slopes to the east. There is no source of fresh water other than rain.

Judging by the name he gave the island, to Columbus the island appeared to be rounded, at least in profile. In reality the island is long and narrow, and reaches a height of almost {{convert|1,000|feet}}. The actual land area of the island is hard to estimate because of the extreme steepness of the slopes, but it is calculated to be somewhere between {{convert|1.6|km2|acre}} and {{convert|2.6|km2|acre}}.

Redonda is uninhabited. The difficult topography, the lack of a safe place to land a boat, and the absence of any freshwater source other than rainfall makes the island inhospitable to humans.

[[File:Sunny Redonda w hut.JPG|thumb|180px|A small stone hut on the top of the island dates from the days when guano was mined there.]]A herd of feral goats and thousands of rats were cleared from the island in 2017 as part of an island restoration programme.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://phys.org/news/2018-07-environmental-brighter-future-redonda-fantastic.html|title=Environmental transformation spells brighter future for Redonda's fantastic beasts|access-date=31 August 2018}}</ref>[[File:Redonda west coast detail.JPG|thumb|225px|left|A detail of the west coast shows the reddish volcanic rock cliffs and a small rock islet with a visible intertidal algal zone, 2011]]

==History==
In 1493, Christopher Columbus and his crew became the first known Europeans to see Redonda, on his second journey. He claimed it for the [[Place:Crown of Castile|Crown of Castile]], but did not land there. He named the island ''Santa María la Redonda'', meaning Saint Mary the Round, reflecting the island's apparent profile when viewed from the side.

As the island is a rock of just over a square kilometre, it did not represent any interest for the powers involved in the [[History:European colonization of the Americas|colonisation of the Americas]] and, for centuries, it was a refuge for pirates.

In the 1860s, the island became a British possession.{{how|date=March 2015}}

During the decades after the 1860s, the rich [[Earth:Guano|guano]] deposits of Redonda were mined for fertiliser, with an annual yield of up to 7,000 [[Ton|ton]]s. Only during this time was the island inhabited by workers; the population was 120 in 1901. After the guano mining, [[Chemistry:Aluminium phosphate|aluminium phosphate]] for [[Chemistry:Gunpowder|gunpowder]] production was discovered and mined. A cableway was constructed to transport material down to the loading pier on the coast.<ref name="kras-2008">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TnItHSAgevMC&pg=PA18 |title=Antigua and Barbuda |chapter=The History of Redonda |page=18 |via=books.google.com |first=Sara Louise|last=Kras |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |year=2008 |isbn=9780761425700 |series=Cultures of the World |volume=26 |quote=a cableway using baskets was built to transfer the mined phosphate to a pier for shipping}}</ref>

In 1914, during the First World War, the mining operations ceased, and most workers left the island. Maintenance workers remained on the island until 1929, when a hurricane destroyed almost all the remaining facilities.<ref name="kras-2008"/> The island has remained uninhabited since then. Two stone huts still stand from the time when the island was occupied. Although the closest island to Redonda is Montserrat, and the second closest is [[Earth:Nevis|Nevis]], in 1967 Redonda became a dependency of the more distant Antigua, now part of Antigua and Barbuda.

Scientists from the Montserrat Volcano Observatory<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mvo.ms/ |title=MVO - Montserrat Volcano Observatory |website=www.mvo.ms |access-date=11 July 2017}}</ref> visit the island in a helicopter periodically; they are using Redonda as an observation point from which to take measurements of the [[Earth:Soufrière Hills|Soufrière Hills]], an active volcano on Montserrat.

== Ecology and conservation ==
Animals [[Biology:Endemism|endemic]] to the island include the [[Biology:Redonda ameiva|Redonda ground dragon]],<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Pholidoscelis atratus: Daltry, J.C. |journal=The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species |date=22 July 2015 |doi=10.2305/iucn.uk.2017-3.rlts.t50009685a121638486.en |doi-access=free}}</ref> the Redonda anole<ref>{{cite iucn |author=Daltry, J.C. |author2=Mahler, D.L. |author3=Powell, R. |author4=Dewynter, M. |date=2020 |title=''Anolis nubilus'' |volume=2020 |page=e.T178336A18970845 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T178336A18970845.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref> and an unnamed species of dwarf gecko.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.anoleannals.org/2017/02/21/of-rats-and-reptiles-an-expedition-to-redonda/ |title=Of Rats and Reptiles: An Expedition to Redonda |date=21 February 2017 |work=Anole Annals |access-date=31 August 2018 |language=en-US}}</ref> The island is a breeding colony for multiple species of seabirds.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.globalwildlife.org/2018/08/15/rare-reptiles-rebound-with-radical-restoration-of-caribbean-island/ |title=Rare Reptiles Rebound with Radical Restoration of Caribbean Island {{!}} Global Wildlife Conservation Global Wildlife Conservation |website=www.globalwildlife.org |language=en |access-date=31 August 2018}}</ref>

The island's local ecology was severely affected by [[Earth:Invasive species|invasive species]], particularly introduced goats and [[Biology:Black rat|rats]], for almost a century. [[Earth:Island restoration|Island restoration]] efforts were initiated in 2016, beginning with removing the island's 60 goats and roughly 6,000 rats.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2 January 2020 |title=Destructive wild goats ruled the island of Redonda for over a century. Now, it's being reborn. |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/raveous-wild-goats-ruled-this-island-for-over-a-century-being-reborn |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418093532/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/raveous-wild-goats-ruled-this-island-for-over-a-century-being-reborn |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2021 |access-date=27 March 2022 |website=Science |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> The Redonda Restoration Programme involves the Environmental Awareness Group, Wildlife Management International and [[Organization:Fauna and Flora International|Fauna and Flora International]]. Several years after the goats were removed, some local plant life began to recover.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Lewis 2023 u594">{{cite web |last=Lewis |first=Nell |title=A Caribbean island once ruled by rats is now a wildlife haven |website=CNN |date=29 September 2023 |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/29/travel/redonda-caribbean-restoration-wildlife-c2e-scn-spc-intl/index.html |access-date=29 September 2023}}</ref>

In September 2023, the Redonda Ecosystem Reserve was established, covering nearly {{convert|30,000|ha}} of land and sea.<ref>{{cite news |last=Handy |first=Gemma |date=1 October 2023 |title=Redonda: Tiny Caribbean island's transformation to wildlife haven |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-66922735 |work=BBC |location=St John's, Antigua |access-date=1 October 2023}}</ref>

==Micronation==
[[File:Redonda Day.JPG|thumb|upright|The island of Redonda, seen from Nevis, with Montserrat in the distance, 2006]]
Redonda is the setting for the myth of the "Kingdom of Redonda". M. P. Shiel, an author of fantasy novels, claimed that in the year of his birth, 1865, his father Matthew Dowdy Shiell, from Montserrat, decided to celebrate his first male child by arranging for the boy to be crowned King of Redonda at the age of 15, in a ceremony purportedly carried out on the small island by a bishop.

Shiel first expressed the idea of the "Kingdom of Redonda" in a promotional leaflet for his books. Since then, the title has been "passed down", and continues to the present day. For a period of time the "Royal" lineage of Redonda had a more or less solely literary theme, with the title being given to writers, such as John Gawsworth and Jon Wynne-Tyson. Wynne-Tyson (King Juan II), his successor the Spanish novelist Javier Marías (King Xavier), and rival contenders for the Redondan title, such as Gawsworth, William L. Gates and Bob Williamson, were featured in a BBC Radio 4 documentary, ''Redonda: The Island with Too Many Kings'', which was broadcast in May 2007.<ref>{{cite web |work=BBC Radio 4 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007j7t6 |title=Redonda: The Island with Too Many Kings |date=27 May 2007}}</ref>

==See also==
*Rodondo Island, in Bass Strait between {{wipe|Australia}} and Tasmania, which was named for its resemblance to Redonda

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{CIA World Factbook}}

==External links==
*[http://www.antiguamuseums.org Antigua and Barbuda Museum]
*{{Cite Americana|wstitle=Redonda Island |short=x}}
{{Wikivoyage|position=left}}



[[Category:Stacks (geology)]]

{{Sourceattribution|Redonda}}