This circular 6 sq km atoll off the coast of Mexico was named after John Clipperton, a pirate who reportedly made the island his hideout. Why the heck he chose this atoll, no one knows. Why the heck it was hotly contested afterwards by multiple nations, no one knows either. Initially annexed by France, it was seized by Mexico, then awarded to France again after some arbitration. As if that wasn’t enough, the island went briefly British after it was inhabited by the British Pacific Island Company who wanted to mine guano. After all that activity, all the countries got bored, and the place is currently uninhabited. The atoll contains a bustling crab population that has been responsible for decimating much of the flora on the island. Right now, all you’ll get is a mixture of soft sand and hard coral. There are some tufts of grass, primarily where the crabs were unable to access the land (figures), as well as around 670 palm trees that were imported to the island. Clipperton Island is more useful offshore than ashore, with tuna fishing as the primary economic activity in the region. Clipperton Island is also known as l’Île de la Passion.
Log In
