Located
off the northwest tip o Bird’s Head Peninsula on the island of New
Guinea, in Indonesia’s West Papua province, Raja Ampat, or the Four
Kings, is an archipelago comprising over 1,500 small islands, cays and
shoals surrounding the four main islands of Misool, Salawati, Batanta
and Waigeo, and the smaller island of Kofiau. Raja Ampat Regency is new
regency which separated from Sorong Regency at 2004. It encompasses more
than 40,000 km² of land and sea, which also contains Cendrawasih Bay,
the largest marine national park in Indonesia. It is a part of the newly
named West Papua (province) of Indonesia which was formerly Irian Jaya.
The islands are the most northern pieces of land in the Australian
continent. The name of Raja Ampat comes from local mythology that tells
about a woman who finds seven eggs. Four of the seven eggs hatch and
become kings that occupy four of Raja Ampat biggest islands whilst the
other three become a ghost, a woman, and a stone.
History
shows that Raja Ampat was once a part of Tidore Kingdom, an influential
kingdom from Maluku. Yet, after Holland invaded Maluku, it was shortly
claimed as a part of the kingdom of Holland. The main occupation for
people around this area is fishing since the area is dominated by the
sea. They live in a small colony of the tribes that spreads around the
area. Although traditional culture still strongly exist, they are very
welcoming to visitors. Their religion is dominantly Christian.
The
oceanic natural resource around Raja Ampat makes it significantly
potential as a touristic area. Many sources place Raja Ampat as one of
their top ten popular places for diving whilst it becomes number one in
terms of underwater biodiversity.
According
to Conservation International, marine surveys suggest that the marine
life diversity in the Raja Ampat area is the highest recorded on Earth.
Diversity is considerably greater than any other area sampled in the
Coral Triangle composed of Indonesia, Philippines and Papua New Guinea.
The Coral Triangle is the heart of the world’s coral reef biodiversity,
making Raja Ampat quite possibly the richest coral reef ecosystems in
the world.
The
area’s massive coral colonies along with relatively high sea surface
temperatures, also suggest that its reefs may be relatively resistant to
threats like coral bleaching and coral disease, which now jeopardize
the survival of other coral ecosystems around the world. The Raja Ampat
islands are remote and relatively undisturbed by humans.
The
high marine diversity in Raja Ampat is strongly influenced by its
position between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as coral and fish larvae
are more easily shared between the two oceans. Raja Ampat’s coral
diversity, resilience, and role as a source for larval dispersal make it
a global priority for marine protection.
1,309
fish species, 537 coral species (a remarkable 96% of all scleractinia
recorded from Indonesia are likely to occur in these islands and 75% of
all species that exist in the world), and 699 mollusk species, the
variety of marine life is staggering. Some areas boast enormous schools
of fish and regular sightings of sharks, such as wobbegongs.
Although
accesing the islands is not that difficult, it takes some time. It
takes six hours flight from Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia to
Sorong. Then, taking boat to reach the islands is necessary. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raja_Ampat_Islands
If you wish for fantastic and unforgettable travel experience
throughout your lifetime, then you are now on the right web page. Raja
Ampat is a tour destination for all reasons to visit. From the highest
point in the sky down to the ocean floor, Raja Ampat has the fascinating
beauty for everyone. If there is a tour destination you must visit at
least once in a lifetime, Raja Ampat is one of them.
