Broutona

Broutona (Russian: о.Броутона; Japanese 武魯頓島; Buroton-tō) is an uninhabited volcanic island located near the northern end of the southern Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Its name is derived from William Robert Broughton, a British ship captain who charted many of the Kuril Islands during his voyages during the 18th century. Its original Ainu name was Makanruru, which translates roughly to "island in a strong current".

Broutona

Native name: о.Броутона 武魯頓島
Landsat Image of Broutona
Geography
Location	Sea of Okhotsk
Coordinates	46.72°N 150.73°E / 46.72; 150.73
Archipelago	Kuril Islands
Area	7 km^2 (2.7 sq mi)
Highest elevation	801 m (2,628 ft)
Administration
Russia
Demographics
Population	0

Geology

Broutona is roughly circular, with an area of 7 square kilometres (3 square miles)[1] It is located approximately 17 kilometres (11 miles) to the northwest of the twin islands of Chirpoy and Brat Chirpoyev.

The island consists of a dormant or extinct stratovolcano, which rises to 801 metres (2,628 feet) above sea level. The mountain has not erupted in historic times. The island has steep cliff sides, which can reach heights of 274 m (899 ft) and no sandy beaches, making landing very difficult and dangerous even in calm weather. These cliffs are weak and are easily eroded by the sea.

History

Broutona appears to have never been inhabited. It appears on an official map showing the territories of Matsumae Domain, a feudal domain of Edo period Japan dated 1644, and these holdings were officially confirmed by the Tokugawa shogunate in 1715. Subsequently claimed by the Empire of Russia, sovereignty initially passed to Russia under the terms of the Treaty of Shimoda, but was returned to the Empire of Japan per the Treaty of Saint Petersburg along with the rest of the Kuril islands. The island was formerly administered as part of Uruppu District of Nemuro Subprefecture of Hokkaidō. After World War II, the island came under the control of the Soviet Union, and is now administered as part of the Sakhalin Oblast of the Russian Federation.

Fauna

In the spring and summer northern fulmar and fork-tailed storm petrel nest on the island.[2]

See also

• List of volcanoes in Russia

References

1. "International Kuril Island Project（IKIP）". University of Washington Fish Collection or the respective authors. Archived from the original on 2013-07-23. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
2. Kondratyev, A. Y., Litvinenko, N. M., Shibaev, Y. V., Vyatkin, P. S., & Kondratyeva, L. F. (2000). "The breeding seabirds of the Russian Far East". Seabirds of the Russian Far East, 37-81.

• "Oceandots: Broutona". Archived from the original on 2010-12-23. Retrieved 2010-05-25.

Further reading

• Gorshkov, G. S. Volcanism and the Upper Mantle Investigations in the Kurile Island Arc. Monographs in geoscience. New York: Plenum Press, 1970. ISBN 0-306-30407-4
• Krasheninnikov, Stepan Petrovich, and James Greive. The History of Kamtschatka and the Kurilski Islands, with the Countries Adjacent. Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 1963.
• Rees, David. The Soviet Seizure of the Kuriles. New York: Praeger, 1985. ISBN 0-03-002552-4
• Takahashi, Hideki, and Masahiro Ōhara. Biodiversity and Biogeography of the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin. Bulletin of the Hokkaido University Museum, no. 2-. Sapporo, Japan: Hokkaido University Museum, 2004.