Native name: Ilha do Corvo | |
|---|---|
 The island of Corvo as seen from the Corvo-Flores Channel | |
 Location in the Azores | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Atlantic Ocean |
| Coordinates | 39°41′51″N31°06′19″W / 39.69750°N 31.10528°W /39.69750; -31.10528 |
| Area | 17.12 km2 (6.61 sq mi)[1] |
| Coastline | 21.49 km (13.353 mi)[1] |
| Highest elevation | 720 m (2360 ft)[1] |
| Highest point | Estreitinho |
| Administration | |
| Region | Azores |
| Demographics | |
| Demonym | Corvino; Corvense |
| Population |  435 (2023)[2] |
| Languages | Portuguese |
| Ethnic groups | Portuguese |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone | |
Corvo Island (Portuguese:Ilha do Corvo,pronounced[ˈiʎɐðuˈkoɾvu],lit. 'Island of the Crow') is the smallest and the northernmost island of theAzoresarchipelago and the northernmost inMacaronesia. It has a population of 435 inhabitants (as of 2023)[3] making it the smallest singlemunicipality in the Azores and inPortugal. The island lies on theNorth American Plate.
The documented history of the Azores originates with non-official exploration during the period of the late 13th century, resulting in maps, such as theGenoveseAtlas Medici from 1351, which mentions obscure islands in an undefinedAtlanticarchipelago. The Medici Atlas refers to anInsula Corvi Marini (Island of the Marine Crow; "marine crow" is the literal translation ofCorvo Marinho, which is the Portuguese name for thecormorant), in a seven-island archipelago, but it is improbable that it refers specifically to Corvo, although the island's name could have originated from this atlas. It is likely that the name referred to the two islands of Corvo andFlores, which also appeared on the later AragoneseMapa Catalão of 1375.
The navigatorDiogo de Teive discovered both islands of the Azores' Western Group on his 1452 return from the Banks ofNewfoundland following his second voyage of exploration. The Portuguese royal chronicles state that when Teive arrived, he found astatue of a man on horseback, standing on a plinth bearing an inscription in an alphabet they did not understand. An attempt was subsequently made to remove the statue to Portugal, which led to its destruction. This account, alongside ahoard of coins which contemporary documents state were unearthed on the island in 1749, has led to speculation that the island was discovered by theCarthaginians c. 200 BC.[4]
Subsequently, the Portuguese Court, when referring to the newIlhas das Flores (Islands of Flowers), began to identify Corvo asIlha de Santa Iria (Island of SaintIrene), but other nautical charts continued to refer to this island asIlhéu das Flores (Islet of Flowers),Ilha da Estátua (Island of the Statue),Ilha do Farol (Island of the Lighthouse) orIlha de São Tomás (Island of Saint Thomas). For a while it was also known asIlha do Marco (Island of the Mark), which was attributed to its reference as a geographic marker for sailors, or, likely, the location of a small promontory where a marker was placed, which received the namePonta do Marco.
Unsuccessful attempts at settlement of the island occurred in the following years; not until 1580 did a permanent settlement become viable.
A religious parish of Corvo was finally constituted in 1674, and then on 20 June 1832, integrated into a functioning civilian administration.
The island is located on theNorth American Plate, west of theMid-Atlantic Ridge on a sea-mount of approximately 1.5-1.0 million years age. The islands of Corvo and Flores emerged from a submarine mount oriented along a north-northeast to south-southwest line, while Corvo is controlled by faults oriented north to south, parallel to the mid-Atlantic Ridge, and transform faults oriented west to east which crosscut secondary cones on the outer slopes. The island formed from a 5 km diameter central volcano (Monte Gorde) that emerged around 730,000 years ago, whose central cone was approximately 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in altitude. The crater collapsed 430,000 years ago during aPlinian eruption, forming a subsidence caldera (2,000 m (7,000 ft) in diameter and 300 m (1,000 ft) depth), referred to as theCaldeirão. Within the caldera are several cinder and spatter cones (20–30 m (65–100 ft) in height) giving rise to small lakes, peat bogs, and islets (two long and five rounded). The highest point on the island, theMorro dos Homens, crowns the southern rim of the Caldeirão at 718 m (2,356 ft) above sea level.
Two main volcanic complexes are usually recognized:
While the initial phases were dominated by basaltic lava flows and pyroclastic deposits, the final phase was characterized by pumice, surges, lahars, and pyroclastic flows characteristic ofPlinian and sub-Plinian eruptions.
Sheer cliffs dominate the coastal areas, the exception being along the southern margin which is composed of ancient lava flows. The western cliffs, with an almost vertical slope rises 700 m (2,300 ft) above sea level; one of the major coastal elevations in the Atlantic. Remnants of the ancient volcano are partially preserved in the southern and eastern flanks of the island (which retain altitudes between 500 and 700 m (1,600 and 2,300 ft) above sea level). In addition to marine erosion, the island is constantly eroded by strong northeast and western winds. In the south, secondary cinder cones, such as Coroinha, Morro da Fonte, Grotão da Castelhana and Coroa do Pico, are visibly preserved with little erosion, and responsible for many basaltic flows that formed the southern lava fajã (10–60 m (30–200 ft) above sea level). The last eruption took place about 80–100,000 years ago in the vicinity of Vila Nova do Corvo.
In the extreme northeast, along the Ponta Torrais there are two small islets, Ilhéu dos Torrais and the Ilhéu do Torrão, in addition to several submarine reefs, that are dangerous to navigation. At the end of October 2012, following several days of excess rainfall, alandslide occurred that dislodged geological debris along the northwestern corner of the island, resulting in the formation of small islets, that progressively transformed into a peninsula and, finally afajã.[5]
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The Corvo Nature Park was created under Regional Legislative Decree 44/2008/A, on 5 November 2008, in order to conserve and protect species habitat and natural resources on the island. It includes principally two categories, and associated areas of intervention:
The islands of Corvo and neighbouringFlores, along with the surrounding waters, form the 210,400 ha Corvo and FloresImportant Bird Area (IBA), designated as such byBirdLife International because it provides feeding and breeding sites for populations ofCory's,little andManx shearwaters, as well asroseate andcommon terns, and, possibly,Madeiran storm petrels.[6]
According toKöppen, Corvo has ahumid subtropical climate. As is the case with other western Azorean islands, the climate is very humid and mild to warm year-round due the effects of theGulf Stream, with around 1,100 mm (43.3 in) of precipitation annually near the coast and reaching 2,400 mm (94.5 in) at the highest altitudes, comfortable although generally windy. Average temperatures are around 17.5 °C (64 °F) in Vila do Corvo, varying between 14 °C (57 °F) in the winter to 22 °C (72 °F) in the summer. Fog is common and almost permanent at higher elevations (and is referred to as theFogs of São João). Due to maritime agitation, particularly on the western coast, there is elevatedabrasion along the coast. Relative humidity is around 80% year-round.
| Climate data forCorvo Airport, 1961-1981, altitude: 18 m (59 ft) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 19.9 (67.8) | 19.5 (67.1) | 20.3 (68.5) | 21.0 (69.8) | 23.8 (74.8) | 25.9 (78.6) | 28.2 (82.8) | 28.9 (84.0) | 28.4 (83.1) | 26.5 (79.7) | 22.6 (72.7) | 21.8 (71.2) | 28.9 (84.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 16.2 (61.2) | 15.8 (60.4) | 16.3 (61.3) | 17.2 (63.0) | 18.8 (65.8) | 21.0 (69.8) | 23.8 (74.8) | 25.2 (77.4) | 23.9 (75.0) | 21.2 (70.2) | 18.7 (65.7) | 17.2 (63.0) | 19.6 (67.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 14.2 (57.6) | 13.8 (56.8) | 14.2 (57.6) | 15.1 (59.2) | 16.6 (61.9) | 18.8 (65.8) | 21.4 (70.5) | 22.6 (72.7) | 21.5 (70.7) | 19.0 (66.2) | 17.0 (62.6) | 15.4 (59.7) | 17.5 (63.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 12.3 (54.1) | 11.7 (53.1) | 12.2 (54.0) | 13.0 (55.4) | 14.4 (57.9) | 16.6 (61.9) | 18.9 (66.0) | 20.1 (68.2) | 19.1 (66.4) | 16.9 (62.4) | 15.2 (59.4) | 13.6 (56.5) | 15.3 (59.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 5.3 (41.5) | 4.5 (40.1) | 5.7 (42.3) | 7.5 (45.5) | 9.0 (48.2) | 11.4 (52.5) | 14.7 (58.5) | 12.5 (54.5) | 13.0 (55.4) | 10.5 (50.9) | 8.0 (46.4) | 4.5 (40.1) | 4.5 (40.1) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 144.0 (5.67) | 119.9 (4.72) | 99.7 (3.93) | 76.5 (3.01) | 62.5 (2.46) | 49.9 (1.96) | 55.9 (2.20) | 67.4 (2.65) | 96.6 (3.80) | 110.2 (4.34) | 131.6 (5.18) | 130.4 (5.13) | 1,144.6 (45.05) |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 80 | 81 | 82 | 82 | 81 | 82 | 80 | 79 | 80 | 80 | 82 | 81 | 81 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 78.6 | 86.0 | 112.5 | 137.3 | 168.4 | 161.6 | 217.3 | 231.1 | 168.2 | 124.0 | 88.7 | 66.9 | 1,640.6 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 26 | 29 | 31 | 35 | 38 | 36 | 48 | 55 | 45 | 36 | 30 | 23 | 36 |
| Source:Instituto de Meteorologia[7][8] | |||||||||||||
There is one urban center on the island: Vila do Corvo. Principally, it is a collection of many residential homes, interspersed with commercial businesses located on the southern one-third of the island. Functionally, by law, Vila do Corvo is the only Portuguese top-level municipality without a civil parish. The urbanized area is divided between the village, the airport, and the island's ports (being the primary links to the other islands in the archipelago). The lands immediately around the settlement are small zones along the eastern coast (Quintas and Fojo) that can sustain cultivation of some crops and fruit trees, and where some older trees have survived settlement; the best pasture-lands are located in the north in the zone of Terras Altas.
The southern coast, referred to as Enseada de Nossa Senhora do Rosário, is the location of three ports, constructed at various times for diverse needs: Porto Novo (currently not utilized), the Porto do Boqueirão and Porto da Casa (the largest and the island's commercial port). Portinho da Areia, on the extreme west of the southern coast (at the end of the airport's runway) is the only beach and principal swimming area on the island.
Subsistence agriculture has predominated on the island since it was first settled. It currently occupies 17.5% of the area of the municipality, and concentrated on small parcels in the eastern half of the island and along the northern parts ofVila do Corvo. In this patchwork of volcanic hedge-rows, farmers concentrate on semi-permanent crops (potatoes, some cereals, including wheat and citrus orchards).
Dairy production is the primary activity, and cheese is one of the primary commercialized products, although the raising of pigs and poultry is also common. Until the 1960s, the raising of sheep and the commercialization of wool was also important on the island. This was until a change in forestry policy forced many farmers to vacate uncultivated lands, lands that were routinely used to graze sheep. It was quickly the end of the wool industry on the island, an industry that had been integral to the island's small export industry.
The island is served by theCorvo Airport (IATA:CVU,ICAO:LPCR), located on the southern margin of the island between the village and southern ocean ports. Inter-island flights are handled bySATA Air Açores: there are no direct flights to Corvo from outside the archipelago. Since the 1990s, the airport has been serviced by oneBombardier Dash 8 Q200 aircraft, big enough to handle the low volume of traffic to the island (weather permitting). These flights have since been operated by alternating[clarification needed] DeHavilland Dash 8 aircraft, as part of the fleet revitalization program of the late 20th century.
| Grupo Oriental (Eastern Group) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Grupo Central (Central Group) | ||
| Grupo Ocidental (Western Group) | ||
| Islets | ||
| Caves and geological features | ||
| Reefs, banks andseamounts | ||
 Municipalities of theAzores Autonomous Region | ||
|---|---|---|
| Corvo | | |
| Faial | ||
| Flores | ||
| Graciosa | ||
| Pico | ||
| Santa Maria | ||
| São Jorge | ||
| São Miguel | ||
| Terceira | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
