true

ISRA FACTSHEETS

NEW ZEALAND & PACIFIC ISLANDS REGION

ISRA FACTSHEETS

NEW ZEALAND & PACIFIC ISLANDS REGION

Ngermeaus Island ISRA

112/179

Ngermeaus Island ISRA

Ngermeaus Island

Summary

Ngermeaus Island is located in the Southern Lagoon of Palau. It is characterised by a gradual sandy slope with small coral heads in the shallow water, which get larger and denser in deeper water. Within this area there are: threatened species and undefined aggregations (Blacktip Reef Shark Carcharhinus melanopterus).

Ngermeaus Island

Ngermeaus Island

DESCRIPTION OF HABITAT

Ngermeaus Island is located in the Southern Lagoon of Palau. The habitat encompasses a gradual sandy slope with some small coral heads in the shallow water, which get larger and denser at greater depths (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). In Palau, tidal amplitude ranges between ~1–2 m, twice a day, and this causes currents to flow in and out of the deep channels and across the shallow reefs. Surface water temperatures in this region of Palau generally range between 27.5–30°C across the year (Colin 2009). There are variations within the reef tract, with the mean temperature of lagoon waters being ~0.3–0.5°C warmer than on the outside of the barrier reef. The highest water temperatures usually occur in late May or early June, then peak again in November (Colin 2009).

This Important Shark and Ray Area is benthic and pelagic and is delineated from inshore and surface waters (0 m) to 30 m based on the bathymetry of the area.

CRITERION A

VULNERABILITY

One Qualifying Species considered threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species regularly occurs in the area. This is the Vulnerable Blacktip Reef Shark (Simpfendorfer et al 2020).

CRITERION C

SUB-CRITERION C5 – UNDEFINED AGGREGATIONS

Ngermeaus Island is an important area for undefined aggregations of one shark species.

Between 2009–2024, recreational divers observed regular aggregations of 10–50 Blacktip Reef Sharks at 1.5–30 metres depth (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). Recreational divers visited the area four times a week and aggregations of Blacktip Reef Sharks were observed on all occasions. Blacktip Reef Sharks were visually estimated to measure 80–160 cm total length and were observed year-round (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). This area is known locally as ‘Shark City’ or ‘Shark Island’ due to the regularity and predictability of Blacktip Reef Shark aggregations, attracting international tourists for recreational dives. Blacktip Reef Sharks may be aggregating in this area for feeding purposes, as feeding behaviour has been observed on several occasions. Blacktip Reef Sharks feed on Yellowstripe Scad Selaroides leptolepis that form large schools within the area (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). Although some provisioning occurs in the area, the aforementioned information demonstrates the regular and predictable observations of undefined aggregations of Blacktip Reef Sharks outside of provisioning events (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). Further, aggregations were recorded between 2020–2022 when no provisioning occurred in the area (T Harel-Bornovski pers. obs. 2024). Further information is required to determine the nature and function of these aggregations.

Ngermeaus Island

SUBMIT A REQUEST

ISRA SPATIAL LAYER REQUEST

To make a request to download the ISRA Layer in either a GIS compatible Shapefile (.shp) or Google Earth compatible Keyhole Markup Language Zipped file (.kmz) please complete the following form. We will review your request and send the download details to you. We will endeavor to send you the requested files as soon as we can. However, please note that this is not an automated process, and before requests are responded to, they undergo internal review and authorization. As such, requests normally take 5–10 working days to process.

Should you have questions about the data or process, please do not hesitate to contact us.

    * indicates required

    Industry or sector (*)

    Under the terms and conditions of our User License Agreement , full and appropriate acknowledgement is required in any materials and publications derived from the data (and copies should be sent to the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group through the contact form). For any publications making substantial use of the data, the ISRA welcomes the opportunity for co-authorship, collaboration, and to comment prior to publication.


    Furthermore, we need to know whether you are a commercial or non-commercial user. Non-commercial includes scientific research, education or conservation. Commercial is defined as follows: any use by, on behalf of, or to inform or assist the activities of a commercial entity (that operates ‘for profit’) or use by a non-profit for the purposes of revenue generation

    Type of use(*):

    Please specify which layer (ex. all layers, layers within a specific Region, layers within a Jurisdiction or a single ISRA): Purpose (*):

    Please provide a description of how you intend to use the ISRA GIS Dataset. The more details you provide, the faster we can respond to your request. We may require further clarification prior to providing access. (min. 100 characters – max 1,000 characters)



    File format request (*)

    By providing your personal data, you consent to its processing as described below. The IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group will use the information you provide on this form to send the documents you requested. You can change your mind at any time by writing to the ISRA Data Coordinator www.sharkrayareas.org/contact. All personal details provided will be treated with respect. For any information you can visit our Privacy Policy.
    Please read the User License Agreement and ISRA Layer Metadata Description

    This form uses Google reCaptcha to reduce spam. Privacy - Terms