St. François Atoll
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with St. François Island in the foreground
(St. François Atoll south)
St. François Atoll is one of two atolls of the Alphonse Group, just three kilometers south of Alphonse Atoll, the second atoll of Alphonse Group. The atoll is uninhabited and has two islands, St. François and Bijoutier Island. The aggregate land area is 0.196 km² (196,000 m²), but the total area including reef flat and lagoon is much larger (roughly 15 km north-south and 5 km east-west, with an area of more than 40 km²). It was discovered on 28th January 1730 by Chevalier Alphonse de Pontevez, commanding the French frigate Le Lys. The atoll is named in honor of Saint Francis de Sales.
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[edit] St. François Island
The southern island was named after Francis de Sales. The area of the island is 176,000 m². St. Francois is easily accessible at less than 30 minutes distance by boat from Alphonse. The local fauna include the frigatebird and the crab plover along with the blue crab.
[edit] Bijoutier Island
The northern and smallest island takes its name from the French word bijoutier, meaning "jeweller". The area of the island is 20,000 m². The island is only accessible by boat during high tide. The island is small enough that it takes only a few minutes to walk completely around it.
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