Henderson Island (Southeastern Polynesia): summary of current knowledge

F. Raymond Fosberg and Atoll Research Bulletin 1951-1991

“…The expedition took him to many remote islands, including Vostok, Flint, Oeno, Rapa, and Maria. Ray's knowledge of Henderson in particular was of critical importance when proposals for its development arose in the 1970s (Fosberg et al 1983). But after he left Hawaii his Pacific interests were necessarily interrupted by the long war years, when he was diverted to economic botany in Andean South America.…”

The non-native vascular plants of Henderson Island, South Central Pacific Ocean

“…However, plants introduced by Polynesians may well have died out or at least become very rare. Captain Beechey, who visited in the Blossom in 1825, did not mention this obvious tree but stated that the tallest trees, and the only ones to yield edible fruit, were Pandanus (Fosberg et al, 1983). Coconuts were introduced during the first visit by the Pitcairn islanders in 1843 (Fosberg et al, 1983), the current groves of coconut on Henderson probably derive entirely from plantings made by Pitcairn islanders supplemented with some local dispersal.…”

“…The supposed pristine nature of the flora and fauna have attracted much attention (Diamond, 1995;Fosberg, Sachet & Stoddart, 1983). However, the North and East Beaches in particular are generally backed by cliffs with numerous caves and these have been utilised as occupation sites by Polynesian settlers, either transiently or continuously, between ca.…”

An Appraisal of the Extent and Geomorphological Diversity of the Coral Reefs of the United Kingdom Dependent Territories

“…Pitcairn is a volcanic island that rises 3.5km from the seafloor with a peak that stands 347 m above sea level with continuous fringing reef around it (Benton and Spencer, 1995). The atoll of Henderson Island is a reef-capped volcano that was uplifted as a result of crustal loading by the adjacent Pitcairn volcano (Fosberg et al 1983;Wells & Jenkins, 1988), giving rise to several unique biodiversity characteristics for which Henderson has been designated a World Heritage Site. Oeno atoll has a marked outer reef rim perimeter, with an island of area 0.7km 2 that has developed at the centre of the lagoon.…”