The
Gardner Pinnacles (
HawaiianThe Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
:
Pūhāhonu) are two barren rock outcrops surrounded by a reef and located in the
Hawaiian IslandsThe Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of 19 islands and atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll. Excluding Midway, which is an unincorporated territory of the...
at , northwest of
HonoluluHonolulu is the capital of and the most populous census-designated place in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Although Honolulu refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and the county are consolidated, known as the City and County of Honolulu, and the city and...
and
French Frigate ShoalsThe French Frigate Shoals is the largest atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Its name commemorates French explorer Jean-François de La Pérouse, who nearly lost two frigates when attempting to navigate the shoals...
. The total area of the two small islets—remnants of an ancient volcano—is . Its highest peak has a commanding height of 170 feet (52 m). The surrounding reef has an area in excess of .
Gardner Pinnacles was first discovered on June 2, 1820 by the American
whalerA whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
Maro commanded by Captain Joseph Allen.
The Gardner Pinnacles are home to some species of fish not found anywhere else in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and have more species of coral than two rocky neighbors to the south,
Necker IslandNecker Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean, north of the Tropic of Cancer, located at . It is part of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, located northwest of Nihoa and northwest of Honolulu, and is part of the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge within the Northwestern Hawaiian...
and
NihoaNihoa , also known as Bird Island or Moku Manu, is a small island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands located northwest of the island of Niihau and northwest of Honolulu...
.
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The
Gardner Pinnacles (
HawaiianThe Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
:
Pūhāhonu) are two barren rock outcrops surrounded by a reef and located in the
Hawaiian IslandsThe Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of 19 islands and atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll. Excluding Midway, which is an unincorporated territory of the...
at , northwest of
HonoluluHonolulu is the capital of and the most populous census-designated place in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Although Honolulu refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and the county are consolidated, known as the City and County of Honolulu, and the city and...
and
French Frigate ShoalsThe French Frigate Shoals is the largest atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Its name commemorates French explorer Jean-François de La Pérouse, who nearly lost two frigates when attempting to navigate the shoals...
. The total area of the two small islets—remnants of an ancient volcano—is . Its highest peak has a commanding height of 170 feet (52 m). The surrounding reef has an area in excess of .
Gardner Pinnacles was first discovered on June 2, 1820 by the American
whalerA whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
Maro commanded by Captain Joseph Allen.
The Gardner Pinnacles are home to some species of fish not found anywhere else in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and have more species of coral than two rocky neighbors to the south,
Necker IslandNecker Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean, north of the Tropic of Cancer, located at . It is part of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, located northwest of Nihoa and northwest of Honolulu, and is part of the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge within the Northwestern Hawaiian...
and
NihoaNihoa , also known as Bird Island or Moku Manu, is a small island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands located northwest of the island of Niihau and northwest of Honolulu...
. Numerous insects live on the island, and a researcher claims to have found two new species of spiders here.
Since this is part of a wildlife refuge, Gardner Pinnacles is off limits to even the military, who made an unauthorized entrance once to blow off the tip of the outcrop to create an emergency helicopter landing spot. In the Hawaiian Archipelago, adjacent islands/reefs are
French Frigate ShoalsThe French Frigate Shoals is the largest atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Its name commemorates French explorer Jean-François de La Pérouse, who nearly lost two frigates when attempting to navigate the shoals...
to the southeast, and
Maro ReefMaro Reef is a largely submerged coral atoll located in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. It was discovered in 1820 by Captain Joseph Allen of the ship Maro, after whose ship the reef was named. With a total area of , it is the largest coral reef in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands...
to the northwest.
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