Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library.
Contributed by American Museum of Natural History.
| www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Transcription
the south end to the end of Mouli Island.
This mainland divides itself into 3 main sections. 1. A
more or less level northern part with abrupt disconnected coral
knobs or old islands along its Eastern and Northern or ocean margin.
This forms a little over 1/3 of the Island. 2. A small high narrow
neck of coral ridge or old Island with cliff faces along the
lagoon side and a very narrow coastal strip of sea deposted sand
and pumice along the east coastal margin. 3. This area forms
only about 1/10 or 1/12 of the Island area. The southern portion of
the Island which forms the remainder of the Island and includes
Mouli Island is mostly a flat plain with a more or less continuous
abrupt wall of rock along the east or ocean side. This has
precepitous sides and abrupt narrow breaks or gateways in it in
3 or 4 places and a narrow coastal shelf along the ocean side.
This shelf being a continuation of the plain on the western side
of the barrier.
In both the large north and south sections the level
plain is a coral rock with rough 2 and 3 foot dykes of coral rock
outcrops here and there and is very rough and potholed as is the
nature of all such formations. Great care having to be taken
when moving through bush in this type of country as nasty falls
into these continuous sources of holes from 2 to 10 and 20 feet
in depth are likely, many such holes being only a foot or 2
across the top, others 10 and 20 feet and in some cases many yards.
Any which are more than 10 feet deep have fresh or almost fresh
water in the porous rock bottoms. In places large holes having
formed small lakes. The greater part of this level plain is
about 10 feet above sea level in the east at the foot of the
abrupt 100 foot outcrops with a gradual fall to the west shore
where it actually falls to sea level and below in many places.