Tofua

Tofua National Park covers the whole of Tofua island in the Ha'apai group of Tonga, 53.94 km² including its surrounding marine environment, and was established in 2001^[1]. It is an active volcano, roughly 8 km across, dominated by a caldera about 5 km wide^[1].

Tofua and Kao together are important for Tongan populations of the Fiji shrikebill and the blue-crowned lorikeet, and seven of ten central Polynesian restricted-range birds occur there. Introduced feral pigs, dogs, rats and cats threaten nesting seabirds and passerines^[2].

The southern half of the island has moist broadleaf tropical forest, while the northern side has grassland, scrub and Casuarina equisetifolia on younger, shallower soils. The site is about 50% forest, 34% shrubland and 16% inland wetland^[2].

Tofua is an active volcano whose caldera holds a freshwater lake about 30 m above sea level, surrounded by cliffs of roughly 300 m^[1]. The caldera rim reaches 558 m, and the lake, Lake Lofia, sits about 23 m above sea level^[2].

Tofua lies in the tropical Ha'apai group of central Tonga, in a warm, humid ocean climate.

Tofua is best known as the place where Captain William Bligh was stranded during the 1789 Mutiny on the Bounty^[1].

Tofua National Park was established in 2001 and is administered by the Forest Division of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change^[1].

The island's main feature is its caldera and the lake it contains, set within steep cliffs^[1].

Tofua is about 50 km from Pangai, the main town of Ha'apai, and is reached by boat.

Forest clearing for kava plantations is the main ongoing threat to the island, followed by invasive animals that prey on nesting birds^[2].