   thumb|270 px|map of the austral islands the tuha'a pae or austral islands () are the southernmost group of islands in french polynesia, an overseas collectivity of france in the south pacific. geographically, they consist of two separate archipelagos, namely in the northwest the tupua'i islands () consisting of the Ãles maria, rimatara, rÅ«rutu, tupua'i island proper and ra'ivÄvae, and in the southeast the bass islands () composed of the main island of rapa iti and the small marotiri (also known as bass rocks or Ãlots de bass). inhabitants of the islands are known for their pandanus fiber weaving skills.http://www.gotahiti.com/hotels/australs-resorts/ the islands of maria and marotiri are not suitable for sustained habitation. several of the islands have uninhabited islets or rocks off their coastlines. austral islands' population is about 6,300 on almost 150&nbsp;km2. the capital of the austral islands administrative subdivision is tupua'i. ==geography== the tuha'a pae or austral islands () are the southernmost group of islands in french polynesia, an overseas collectivity of france in the south pacific. geographically, the austral islands consist of two separate archipelagos. from northwest to southeast they are: * the tupua'i islands (), named for one of the main islands. it consists of: ** Ãles maria (
Austral_Islands