page_title: Orona
section_title: Flora and fauna
hierarchical_section_title: Orona / Flora and fauna
caption_attribution_description: English: Tridacna giant clams at Kanton Island, Phoenix Islands
context_page_description: Orona atoll, also known as Hull Island, is one of the Phoenix Islands in the Republic of Kiribati. It measures approximately 8.8 km by 4 km, and like Kanton, is a narrow ribbon of land surrounding a sizable lagoon with depths of 15–20 metres. Numerous passages connect the lagoon to the surrounding ocean, only a couple of which will admit even a small boat. Total land area is 3.9 km², and the maximum elevation is nine metres.
  Kiribati declared the Phoenix Islands Protected Area in 2006, with the park being expanded in 2008. The 164,200-square-mile marine reserve contains eight coral atolls including Orano.
  Although occupied at various times during the past, including as late as 2004, Orona is uninhabited today.
context_section_description: Like Manra, Orona is covered with coconut palms (mostly on the western side), towering 12–18 metres (39–59 ft) above the surface. The remainder of the atoll is covered with scrub forest, herbs, and grasses, with a maximum height of 6–12 metres (20–39 ft). Feral cats exist on the island, together with rats, pigs, and dogs. Ducks and chickens were raised by the former inhabitants, but it is unknown whether any remain. Orona also boasts three species of lizards, land and hermit crabs, together with approximately fifty species of insects. Turtles are also known to use the island as a nesting area.
  
  Unlike Manra, whose lagoon is too salty for marine life, Orona's lagoon teems with fish and giant clams. 
  A survey of Orona carried out in 2006 did not detect rats. However, Polynesian rats were located on the island in 2009, as well as more than 20 cats.
caption: Tridacna giant clams in the lagoon of Orona
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot A570 IS", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "GIMP 2.8.10", "Image DateTime": "2014:05:08 22:21:31", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "212", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "3560", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "11673", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/500", "EXIF FNumber": "4", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:09:22 15:28:11", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:09:22 15:28:11", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "3", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "287/32", "EXIF ApertureValue": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "11/4", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "29/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3072", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2304", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "3072", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "2304", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "3412", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "40960/3", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "2304000/169", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "9715b8ac2f02f049a89a120d5be99e1c"}