Isla de Aves (;

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

for "Island of Birds" or "Birds Island"), or Aves Island, is a Federal Dependency of

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. It has been the subject of numerous

territorial dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of land between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial disputes are often related to the possession of natural resources s ...

s (now resolved) with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

(through the

Guano Islands Act The Guano Islands Act (, enacted August 18, 1856, codified at §§ 1411-1419) is a United States federal law passed by the U.S. Congress that enables citizens of the United States to take possession, in the name of the United States, of unclai ...

of 1856), neighboring independent islands, such as Dominica, and European mother countries of surrounding dependent islands, such as the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, or the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It is a part of the

Aves Ridge The Aves Ridge is a ridge in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It runs in a north-south direction, approximately 250 km west of the Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc. It is mostly under water, but it reaches the surface in the north as Aves Island an ...

and lies to the west of the

Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean Sea No ...

chain at . It is in length and never more than in width, and rises above the sea on a calm day. Under a particular interpretation of the

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 c ...

, it could be classified as a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, which would only give Venezuela a twelve nautical mile economic zone. However, Venezuela claims it is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, which grants it a exclusive economic zone. Mostly sand, a small portion has some scrubby vegetation. It is sometimes completely submerged during hurricanes. It is southwest of the closest land, Montserrat, west of Dominica and north of the Venezuelan mainland.

Impact of hurricanes

For some time the island has been in danger of eroding altogether, and Venezuelan authorities are considering ways to protect it, along with the territorial claims to the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

which radiate from Isla de Aves. The impact of

Hurricane Allen Hurricane Allen was a rare and extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that affected the Caribbean, eastern and northern Mexico, and southern Texas in August 1980. The first named storm and second tropical cyclone of the 1980 Atlantic hurricane ...

in the 1980 Atlantic hurricane season divided it into two parts, but accretions of

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and ...

have subsequently reunited it. On August 17, 2007, the force of

Hurricane Dean Hurricane Dean was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the most intense North Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Wilma of 2005, tying for eighth overall. Additionally, it made the fourth most intense Atl ...

severely eroded the island.

Environment

The island is a resting and breeding place for seabirds and the green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''). Its low profile makes it a hazard to navigation, and many ships have been wrecked here.

Amateur radio "entity"

Aves Island is a particularly rare amateur radio "entity", under the ITU prefix YV0. A 2006 expedition by operators to the island required 14 years of planning. Though one member suffered a fatal heart attack, over 42,000 contacts were made during their week-long stay.

History

The island was most likely discovered by Avaro Sanzze in 1584, though it was not settled. It was subsequently claimed for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

and the

. Throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, the inhabitants of the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

islands Saint Eustatius and

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Şaba (Romanian for Shabo), a town of the Odesa Oblast, Ukraine * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Saba (river), ...

regularly visited Aves to collect turtle and bird eggs. In 1854, a U.S. captain discovered the abundant quantities of guano on Aves and systematic collection started not long after. Both the Dutch and Venezuelan authorities found out and protested. The Dutch sent a warship to Aves. Its captain found Americans loading guano. He informed them that the Dutch considered Aves to belong to the Netherlands. The island was once again involved in controversy in 1857 when three

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

men, "Mesers Shelton, Samson and Tappan", were in a dispute with the Venezuelan government after they "annexed" the island "which they had discovered in an abandoned condition"; this was done in accordance with the recently passed United States Guano Islands Act. In the meantime, in 1859, the Administrator of St. Eustatius granted a concession to collect guano on Aves to ‘Edward Green, Kean & Co.’ in Baltimore at f. 2.50 per ton. He decided that “''even though Aves was never permanently settled by the Dutch, the inhabitants of Statia and Saba had made use of the island longer than anyone can remember'',” which “''constituted proof of possession.''” He gave a provisionary concession and asked the Governor in Curaçao to confirm. The Governor, meanwhile, had received a request to mine guano on Aves from a group of businessmen on Dutch St. Maarten, “''who had assured themselves that Aves was recognized as a possession of the Dutch government''.” The Dutch authorities on Curaçao, under whom St. Eustatius and Saba fell, sat down with the Venezuelans and together decided to find a mutually acceptable sovereign to decide about the ownership of Aves Island. The Queen of

was accepted by both parties, and in 1865

Isabella II Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successi ...

ruled on the issue, deciding in favor of the Venezuelans. However, Isabella's judgment acknowledged the time honored rights of the inhabitants of the Dutch islands St. Eustatius, Saba and St. Maarten to fish in the waters around Aves. As this was the main issue the Dutch had, they accepted the ruling. Later, some Dutch historians argued that Isabella's advisors could have mixed up Aves with

Las Aves Archipelago The Las Aves Archipelago is a pristine archipelago in the Caribbean Sea, and is part of the Federal Dependencies of Venezuela. It is located north of the Venezuelan states of Aragua and Carabobo, between the Dutch island Bonaire in the west, an ...

lying between Bonaire and

Los Roques The Los Roques Archipelago (Spanish: ''Archipiélago de Los Roques'') is a federal dependency of Venezuela consisting of approximately 350 islands, cays, and islets in a total area of 40.61 square kilometers. The archipelago is located dir ...

, just off the coast of Venezuela. From 1878 to 1912, the island was again occupied by American guano miners until supplies were exhausted. Isla de Aves was included in Venezuela's territorial reorganization done by President

Joaquín Crespo Joaquín Sinforiano de Jesús Crespo Torres (; 22 August 1841 – 16 April 1898) was a Venezuelan military officer and politician. A member of the Great Liberal Party of Venezuela, he served as the president of Venezuela from 1884 to 1886 and ag ...

in 1895. By 1905, Isla de Aves was a municipality called "Municipio Oriental" part of Colón Federal Territory. In 1950, a

Venezuelan Navy ) , mascot = , battles = Venezuelan War of Independence and the Battle of Lake Maracaibo , anniversaries = July 24, Birthday of Simon Bolivar, Navy Day and Battle of Lake Maracai ...

fleet consisting of two patrol boats and one transport boat were sent to take control of the island with a group of soldiers. On June 2, 1978, the Venezuelan Navy were sent to set up a scientific naval base named '' Simón Bolívar'' on the lee (west) side near the southern tip of the island, constructed as a platform built on stilts partially in the water, which was permanently inhabited by a group of scientists and military personnel. Isla de Aves Venezuela 003

United States—Venezuela Maritime Boundary Treaty

On March 28, 1978, Venezuela, using Aves Island as its reference, agreed to its maritime borders with the U.S. between Aves Island and Puerto Rico in the United States–Venezuela Maritime Boundary Treaty; this treaty came into force on 24 November 1980 after it was ratified by both parties. The island is the closest Venezuelan territory to the United States, approximately from the U.S. island of

St. Croix Saint Croix; nl, Sint-Kruis; french: link=no, Sainte-Croix; Danish and no, Sankt Croix, Taino: ''Ay Ay'' ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincor ...

Agreement with France

On June 17, 1980, Venezuela agreed with France that longitude 62°48′52″ W should be the

maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of the Earth's water surface areas using physiographic or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

between Aves Island and Guadeloupe and Martinique.

2006 Dominica and Venezuela informal agreement

During a visit to Venezuela, Dominica’s Prime Minister

Roosevelt Skerrit Roosevelt Skerrit (born 8 June 1972) is a Dominican politician who has been Prime Minister of Dominica since 2004; he has also been the Member of Parliament for the Vieille Case constituency since 2000. Regionally, he has served as the chairman ...

, in June 2006, stated that ''Aves Island belongs to Venezuela'', ending the territorial claim.Viceministerio de Gestión Comunicacional
/ref>

Historical maps

File:Isla de Aves en 1647.svg, 1647 File:Isla de Aves 1887.svg, 1887 File:Isla de Aves en 1970.svg, 1970 File:Isla de Aves en 1980.svg, Before

(1980) File:Isla de Aves en 1980 después del Huracán Allen.svg, After

(1980)

References

External links

Bird Island: time to act
Editorial on the Commonwealth of Dominica taking steps to reclaim sovereignty over the island. *
2006 amateur radio activity, including pictures

YW0A 4M5DX Group Amateur Radio DX Pedition to Aves Island 2014

YX0V Amateur Radio DX Pedition Aves Island 2016

Articles and papers

"Island' talk for Caricom, Venezuela
(July 7, 2006) ''Barbados NationNews''

(March 16, 2006) ''Caribbean Net News''
Shock over Bird Island
(November 10, 2005) ''Barbados Advocate News''
Drama over Bird Island
(November 10, 2005) ''Barbados Advocate News''
OECS raps Caracas' claim to island
(November 9, 2005) ''Barbados NationNews''
Caricom to meet over Aves Island
(October 24, 2005) ''Barbados NationNews''
History proves Venezuelan ownership of Isla de Aves

VicePresident Rangel thinks that the "empire" is behind claim to Aves Island
{{Authority control IUCN Category IV Federal Dependencies of Venezuela Islands of the West Caribbean Aves Territorial disputes of Venezuela Bird Island Uninhabited islands of Venezuela Extreme points of Venezuela Caribbean islands claimed under the Guano Islands Act