Guanahaní Islands (Gwee-awn-uh-hah-ni)
The islands of the Guanahani are an extensive archipelago in the far west of the Dubar Ocean, mostly strung between Hahnunah and Cemanahauc. They've long been known as a resort vacation destination for honeymooners and retirees, but a small movement toward eco-tourism and backpacking has started to open up the Guanahani to more independent travel. With year-round good weather (with the occasional but sometimes serious exception of hurricane season in the late summer and early fall), promotional air trips from both Yaojing and recently Dunia, and hundreds of islands to explore, the Guanahani offers something for almost everyone.
Geography
Geographically, the Guanahani Sea is bounded by two archipelagoes – the Aloi Archipelago to the north and the Yucayas Archipelago to the east – and by northern Cemanahauc to the south and the Hahnuhah continent to the west.
The Aloi islands include Kiskeya, Cobao, Borikén, Yamaye, Iere. Meanwhile the other is a cluster of islands named collectively as the Yucayas, that include Abacoa, Liamuiga, Oualie, Karukera, Aichi, Siba, Mayaguana, and Sibukeira.
Ecosystem
The climate of the area is tropical, varying from tropical rainforest in some areas to tropical monsoon and tropical savanna in others. There are also some islands that have arid portions with considerable drought in some years, and the peaks of mountains tend to have cooler temperate climates.
Ecosystem Cycles
While the region generally is sunny much of the year, the wet season from late spring through autumn sees more frequent cloud cover (both broken and overcast), while the dry season from winter through mid spring is more often clear to mostly sunny. Seasonal rainfall is divided into 'dry' and 'wet' seasons, with the latter six months of the year being wetter than the first half. The air temperature is hot much of the year, varying from 25 to 33 °C (77 to 91 °F) between the wet and dry seasons. Seasonally, monthly mean temperatures vary from only about 5 °C (9 °F) in the northernmost regions, to less than 3 °C (5 °F) in the southernmost areas of the Guanahani.
Hurricane season is from early summer to fall, but they occur more frequently in late in summer and more common in the northern islands of the Guanahani. Hurricanes that sometimes batter the region usually strike northwards of the Aloi and to the west coast of Cemanahauc.
Sea surface temperatures change little annually, normally running from 30 °C (86 °F) in the warmest months to 26 °C (79 °F) in the coolest months. The air temperature is warm year-round, in the 20s and 30s °C (70s, 80s, and 90s °F), and varies only from winter to summer about 2–5 degrees on the southern islands and about a 10–20 degrees difference on the northern islands of the Guanahani. The northern islands may be influenced by continental masses during winter months, such as cold fronts.
Fauna & Flora
The Guanahani islands have some of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. The animals, fungi, and plants have been classified as one of the world's biodiversity hotspots because of their exceptionally diverse terrestrial and marine ecosystems, ranging from montane cloud forests, to tropical rainforest, to cactus scrublands. The region also contains about 8% (by surface area) of the world's coral reefs along with extensive seagrass meadows, both of which are frequently found in the shallow marine waters bordering the island and continental coasts of the region.
Comments