The Acteon Group (Groupe Actéon) is a rather isolated and uninhabited subgroup in the far southeast of the
Tuamotu atoll
An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most ...
group in
French Polynesia
French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...
. It is located about east-southeast of
Tahiti
Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...
at latitude: 21° 17' 60 S, longitude: 136° 29' W.
Atolls
The Acteon Group includes four atolls of relatively small size:
*
Matureivavao
*
Tenararo
*
Tenarunga
*
Vahanga
None of the islands on these atolls have permanent inhabitants, except for Tenarunga.
History
The first recorded European to sight the Acteon Group was
Pedro Fernández de Quirós
Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for '' Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter.
The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meani ...
on 5 February 1605. He described the group as ''"four atolls crowned by coconut palms"''. On the different texts describing his voyage by other members of this Spanish expedition they were charted as "Las Cuatro Coronadas" (The four Crowned), "Las Cuatro Hermanas" (The Four Sisters), "Las Virgenes" (The Virgins) or "Las Anegadas" (The Flooded ones).
The rediscovery of Acteon Group is generally credited to
Thomas Ebrill, captain of the Tahitian trading vessel ''Amphitrite'', who discovered these islands in 1833. However, they were sighted by Hugh Cuming on his ship Discoverer, Captain Samuel Grimwood, on 14 March 1828
ource: Cuming's log They were named four years later by
Lord Edward Russell, commander of , after his vessel.
In January 1983 these atolls were struck by Severe Tropical Cyclone Nano.
In 1932 Tahiti's High Court recognised government ownership of the group, as well as the nearby atolls of
Maria Est,
Tematangi, and
Vanavana.
In 1953 the government established two civil real estate companies to develop the atolls for the benefit of their former inhabitants and granted them exclusive use for ten years.
[ This period of exclusive use was later extended,][ and in 1975 and 1979 the atolls were permanently transferred. The companies were later dissolved, leaving the ownership of the atolls uncertain.][
In March 2021 the Catholic Mission of Tahiti (CAMICA) claimed ownership of the seven atolls by right of occupation, leading to protests by the descendants of the original owners. The acquisition was later challenged in court.][ In January 2023 two people, including former vicar of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Papeete Father Joel Aumeran, were taken into custody and accused of fraud by prosecutors in relation to the case. As of January 2024 the case is still unresolved.]
Administration
Administratively, the four atolls of the Acteon group belong to the commune of Gambier.
References
External links
Reefbase – Picture
Island Conservation: The Acteon and Gambier Restoration Project
Atolls of the Tuamotus
Island restoration
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