Rock Islands Southern Lagoon, World Heritage Site in Palau

The Palau Islands in the Pacific Ocean are a group of 445 rock islands (uninhabited limestone islands). The islands are famous for their beautiful lagoons, and there are 52 brackish lakes (marine lakes) in the registered area that are home to a wide variety of creatures. The Julie Fish Lake, home to the golden jellyfish, is particularly famous.In fact, each island was heavily inhabited from more than 2,500 years ago until the 18th century, and the remains of settlements and murals remain, making it a heritage complex.

Here, a World Heritage enthusiast explains why the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon are World Heritage sites in an easy-to-understand manner. Read this and you will definitely learn more about the Rock Islands!

What is the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon?

The 445 islands scattered in Koror Province, southwestern Palau, are registered as a World Heritage Site as the “Rock Island Group and Southern Lagoon. The islands are surrounded by trees, like umbrellas. The landscape is famous for the milky white sea called the Milky Way that runs between the islands.

Each island has a cluster of beautiful lagoons. Each island has a cluster of marine lakes (brackish lakes), 52 in number, and the most nutrient-rich lakes are home to endemic and endangered species, including new species discovered in the 17th and 18th centuries, when the islands were uninhabited. The history of the migration from the Rock Islands is still handed down in various forms among the Palauan people.

Main registered components

Lagoon

A lagoon is a body of water separated from the open sea, and Rock Island has numerous lagoons. The Blue Corner is a popular diving spot where endangered species such as the Napoleon fish can be seen.

Marine Lakes (brackish lakes)

There are many lakes in Rock Island, but Marine Lake, which is connected to the ocean underground and mixed with seawater, is the most distinctive.In fact, about a quarter of the world’s marine lakes are located on Rock Island. Jellyfish Lake on Mecherchar Island is a particularly representative marine lake, and is famous for its large population of golden jellyfish (a member of the Spotted jelly family).

Cultural heritage

The islands were uninhabited in the 17th and 18th centuries, but the remains of settlements and murals still exist today, indicating that people have lived on each island for more than 2,500 years.

On Ulong Island, there are rock paintings that were carved 2,000 to 3,000 years ago, and these are the oldest historical sites.Other sites have also been discovered on Ulong Island, including the ruins of settlements where people lived from the 10th to 17th centuries. On Ngeruktabel, stone coins have been unearthed, and caves that were used as burial grounds have also been discovered. Despite the existence of so many ruins, it is believed that the people who lived here migrated to the neighboring islands in the 17th and 18th centuries due to population growth, climate change, and lack of food due to overfishing of marine resources.

The descendants of those who migrated from the Rock Island group to the larger islands have kept their records alive through legends, myths, dances, and proverbs.

For what reason is the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon on the World Heritage List?

Rock Island was recognized for the following

Registration Criteria (iii)
The point is that the ruins of settlements and murals that remain on Rock Island prove that people once lived here by fishing.

Registration Criteria (v)
The abandonment of Rock Island in the 17th and 18th centuries meant that climate change and the depletion of marine products were limiting social activity.

Registration Criteria (vii)
The turquoise lagoon is beautiful and the marine lakes (brackish water lakes) are home to a wide variety of saltwater life.

Registration Criteria (ix)
The registered area has 52 lakes, including marine lakes (brackish lakes), which means that new species have been discovered and many endemic species live in the area, such as the golden jellyfish of Jellyfish Lake.

Registration Criteria (x)
The fact that the ecosystem is rich in endangered species such as green turtles, the endangered hawksbill turtle, and almost half of Palau’s endemic fish and plants.

Conclusions and Impressions of a World Heritage Maniac

The image of the island is that it is valued as a natural heritage site because of its scenery consisting of beautiful lagoons and marine lakes (brackish lakes), and the diverse ecosystems that live on Jellyfish Lake and other areas, but it is also highly valued as a cultural heritage site. Traces of the many people who once lived on the island have also been discovered. The point of this heritage site is not only its spectacular scenery but also its high value as a cultural heritage site.

Incidentally, octopus jellyfish are poisonous and dangerous octopuses, but the golden jellyfish that live in Jellyfish Lake are not poisonous and can be touched, so travelers can enjoy them safely.

*The content here is a discussion derived from research conducted by World Heritage enthusiasts.As for the data, interpretation differs depending on the media.