Galathea

Galathea National Park covers about 110 km² on Great Nicobar Island in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, gazetted in 1992^[1]. It is named for the Danish ship Galathea, which surveyed the island in 1845-47^[1].

Notable animals include the giant robber crab, the Nicobar megapode and the Nicobar pigeon, and leatherback turtles nest on the coast^[1].

Vegetation is largely tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest, considered among the best-preserved rainforests of the region^[1].

Great Nicobar is the southernmost island of the Nicobar group in the Bay of Bengal.

The climate is tropical with monsoon rains averaging 3,000-3,800 mm in the wet season^[1].

Great Nicobar was surveyed for minerals by the Danish Galathea expedition in 1845-47^[1].

The park was gazetted in 1992 and is part of the Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve, declared in 1989 and recognised by UNESCO in 2013^[1].

The park's draw is its rainforest and coast, including leatherback turtle nesting^[1].

The nearest civil airport is Veer Savarkar International Airport at Port Blair, on another island, with flights to Chennai and Kolkata^[1]. Campbell Bay, about 15 km away, is the nearest settlement.

It is separated from Campbell Bay National Park by a 12 km forest buffer zone^[1]. The Great Nicobar Development Plan, including a port, airport and township, is a concern for the island's ecology^[1].