Ilet Pelé

Îlet Pelé is an islet of François located near îlet Long. It was named « Pelé » (pelé means bare in French) because of the scarcity of trees and grass. It has no inhabitants.

It is a flat islet of 4 meters above the level of the sea. The islet is probably formed by a set of coarse hyaloclastite (lava, in contact with water solidifies and forms then rocks called hyaloclastites) deriving of eruptions from neighboring islets.

Showing a lack of vegetation and a very rocky soil, the Îlet Pelé furthermore very subject to marine erosion.

It is a popular islet seasonally. It was during the summer holidays or weekends of Easter and Pentecost that this islet is busiest.

It has a pontoon allowing boats to dock and a dwelling of 5 rooms, very certainly the residence of a White Creole or "Béké" which dates back to the 1960s. There are trees near the house (coconut trees, frangipani trees, agaves, various cacti, pear trees, oleanders, bougainvilleas) but the rest of the islet remains bare.

Îlet Pelé belongs to the class of very degraded islets. With a very rocky soil and no vegetation, it is threatened by sea erosion increasingly strong. The solution that is necessary is to replant the ground by planting grass, shrubs and dynamics tree formation.

But unfortunately, it seems that one is already in an ultimate collapse phase and no way back to the ecosystem of this islet.