Waigeo Island

Waigeo Island, largest island of the Raja Ampat group in the Dampier Strait, West Papua (Papua Barat) province, Indonesia. Waigeo Island lies about 40 miles (64 km) northwest of West Papua’s Doberai (Vogelkop) Peninsula, which forms the western tip of the island of New Guinea. It is 70 miles (110 km) long (east-west) and 30 miles (48 km) wide (north-south). The island, which is almost bisected by a narrow inlet of the Dampier Strait, has a rocky and generally steep coastline. Its central areas are mountainous, rising to 3,300 feet (1,000 metres), and are heavily forested with hardwood; streams plunge down the rock faces. Some parts of the island are covered with head-high grass, casuarina groves, and stands of pine trees. The crimson bird-of-paradise is found there, together with opossums, cuscuses, snakes, tortoises, frilled and giant monitor lizards, plumed herons, and honeyeaters. The climate is hot and humid on the coastal fringes and cool inland. There is little agriculture, and the major product is sago. Cattle are raised, and deep-sea fishing is important. Tortoise shells and fish are exported. The island is sparsely populated by various peoples who speak Austronesian languages. Chief settlements are Saonek on the southern tip of the western half of Waigeo and Wakre on the southern tip of the eastern half of the island. Transport is by boat to the more southerly islands of Batanta, Kofiau, and Salawati and to New Guinea through the port of Sorong on the western coast of the Doberai Peninsula.