Isla Gibraleón
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Location of the Pearl Islands archipelago | |
  Isla Gibraleón
Location of Isla Gibraleón in the Gulf of Panama | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Gulf of Panama |
| Archipelago | Pearl Islands archipelago |
| Adjacent bodies of water | Gulf of Panama |
| Area | 112.35 ha (277.6 acres) |
| Coastline | 8 km (5 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 11 m (36 ft) |
| Country | |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone |
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Isla Gibraleón is a small, uninhabited Panamanian island that is part of the Pearl Islands archipelago (Spanish: Archipielago de las Perlas) in the Gulf of Panama.[1] It is located 2 km (1.2 mi) west from Isla Casaya,[2] and is part of a group of 200 or more islands and islets (many tiny and uninhabited) lying about 30 miles (48 km) off the Pacific coast of Panama. The island has an eight-kilometre (5.0-mile) coastline, five beaches, a mangrove swamp, and is covered in 153.18 acres (61.99 ha) of dense jungle.[3][4] It has a total surface area of 277.62 acres (112.35 ha),[3] which makes it the 12th largest island of the archipelago.[3] It rises to a height of 11 metres (36 ft) above mean sea level[5][6] and lies in the America/Panama UTC−05:00 time zone.[6]
Climate
The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), known by sailors as the doldrums, governs the climate of Isla Gibraleón.[7] March is the warmest month with an average temperature of 32.5 °C (90.5 °F). January is the coldest, averaging 21.9 °C (71.42 °F) at night.[8] Due to its proximity to the equator, Isla Gibraleón does not really have distinct temperature seasons.[8] Variation in the location of the intertropical convergence zone drastically affects rainfall in many equatorial regions, resulting in the wet and dry seasons of the tropics rather than the cold and warm seasons of higher latitudes. Isla Gibraleón's wet season occurs during the months of May to December, when the ITCZ is located over or slightly to the north of Panama.[7] This period is characterised by light, variable winds and heavy rainfall. The dry season, from January to April, is experienced during the Northern hemisphere winter when the ITCZ is located to the south of Panama, and is a period characterised by clear skies and predominant North-east Caribbean trade winds.[7] This unique environment and the location of the islands in the Pearl Islands archipelago protects them from the damaging winds and other effects of El Niño, allowing the surrounding waters, which are usually between 28 to 29 °C (82 to 84 °F) during the wet season,[7] to sustain the uninterrupted evolution of new marine species including whale and tiger sharks, sperm whales, sea turtles, angel rays and giant schools of fish.[7]
Popular culture
Isla Gibraleón was used as the location of the men's island in the first series of The Island with Bear Grylls,[4][9] and for the women's island in the second series.[9] In the first series, which began on 5 May 2014, thirteen British men were taken to the island by Bear Grylls for a month where they were left completely alone, filming themselves, and with only the clothes they were wearing and some basic tools.[10] For the second series, in April 2015 the format was repeated with a team of 14 British men living on another island in the archipelago, Isla San Telmo, and Isla Gibraleón being home to 14 British women.[11]
References
- ↑ "Isla Gibraleón: Panama". Bethesda, MD, US: National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 1993-12-23. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ "MBendi Information Services". Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Guevara Cordoba, Jose Miguel (2005-09-18). "Changes in Land Use and Cover in Archipelago Las Perlas: A Proposal for a Protected Area" (PDF). School of Life Sciences Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "IMDb The Island with Bear Grylls – Series 1". IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ "Isla Gibraleón". Geoview.info. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Isla Gibraleón - Getamap.net". Getamap.net. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 McNiven, Gregor (2003-09-01). "An Assessment of the Pearl Islands Archipelago, Pacific Panama" (PDF). School of Life Sciences Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. Retrieved 2015-04-29.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Isla Gibraleón – Chichi World Atlas". Chinci 2011, The Travel Location Guide. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "TV One - The Island with Bear Grylls". TVNZ, New Zealand. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ Grylls, Bear (2014-05-19). "Bear Grylls: 'There's nothing fake about The Island'". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group Limited). Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ Runcie, Charlotte (2015-04-09). "The Island with Bear Grylls: The Women's Island: 'inspiring'". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group Limited). Retrieved 2015-04-28.