Current view: Text account
Site description (2008 baseline):
Site location and context
Gaua rises about 3000m from the seafloor to an altitude of 797m. Gaua has had at least 13 eruptionsfrom Mt Gharat since 1963 - the most recent in 1982 lasting less than a day. Mt Gharat is denuded by recent volcanic activity, but the caldera are vegetated with rainforest.
Important for its Palm Lorikeet and Royal Parrotfinche populations. Also holds small numbers of Vanuatu Imperial Pigeon and Vanuatu Megapode.
Non-bird biodiversity: Fiji Blossom Bat Notopteris macdonaldi, Vanuatu Flying Fox Pteropus anetianus, Coconut Crab Birgus latro.
The slope forest is low stature, rich in epiphytes and abundant in ferns. On the lower slope areas, the forest increases in stature and display emergent trees, probably figs. Tree gardens and shifting cultivation with bush fallow are concentrated on the coastal and lower slope areas of the island. There are also extensive coconut plantations.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
An increasing human population and resultant agricultural activities have led to clearance of forest. Some families have even settled around Lake Letas. The introduction of invasive species poses a serious threat - already there are fire ants on Gaua and Merremia vine on the lower slopes.
Lake Letas was proposed as a World Heritage Site in 2004.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Gaua (Vanuatu). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/gaua-iba-vanuatu on 23/12/2024.
