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National Park of American Samoa butterfly fish at Ofu Lagoon.
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National Park of American Samoa
Nature & Science
 
Brown booby, fua'o, nest on Pola Ridge
NPS | TAVITA TOGIA
Brown booby, fua'o, nest on Pola Ridge.
 

Overview

The Samoan Archipelago is a typical Pacific Ocean Volcanic Island arc. As the Pacific Ocean plate moves across a stationary hot spot (a place where molten rock from the Earth's mantle pierces the lithosphere plate) it forms a line of volcanoes, some of which reach the ocean surface to form a string of islands. The National Park of American Samoa is really 'three parks' on three separate islands--Ta'u, Ofu, and Tutuila. The national park is remote and is located in the Southern Hemisphere--near the International Date Line. These web pages offer you an opportunity to appreciate the park's unique culture, biodiversity and scenic beauty, and day-dream of actually visiting Ofu, Olosega, Ta'u, and Tutuila. Plan to spend some time here someday.

 

The park's Inventory & Monitoring staff compiled a bibliography (with pdf copies) of Environmental Literature of the Samoan Archipelago. View Version 1, 2007 alphabetically by author, or   view Version 1, 2007 by subject.

Click here to access the Pacific Islands Parks' Inventory and Monitoring website. 

noddy tern
Natural History Guide to the Park
The on-line version of our latest book
more...
 Lined tang button
Fish Inventory
Lots of pictures of our local fishes
more...
 Coral head button
Coral Inventory
More than 200 species, many illustrated
more...
Thespesia
Plant Inventory
Checklist of higher plants with some illustrations
more...

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Collared kingfisher closeup

Did You Know?
The local kingfisher of Samoa, the collared kingfisher, very seldom preys on fishes. Insects are its principal food and it can often be seen perched in a tree or on a tlelphone wire scanning the ground for insects.

Last Updated: December 22, 2011 at 20:21 MST