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Inhaca Island (Ilha da Inhaca in Portuguese) is a subtropical island Of Mozambique off the East African coast.


Geographical features









Among 160 coral species are staghorn and plate corals. There are two badly damaged pure coral reefs flanking the island's western perimeters, in very shallow water, which are supposed to be protected but in reality there is no actual control of the marine reserves. Conspicuous fish are King Mackerel - called Serra, potato bass, barracuda and giant trevally. Others present are Brindle Bass /Goliath Grouper, scorpionfish, butterflyfish, pufferfish, parrotfish moray eel and seahorses. Whale sharks and manta rays visit in summer.

Whale watching Although humpback whales migrate seasonally past these shores whale watching has never become a popular attraction here as the ocean is generally too rough and too far for Mr and Mrs Average and hiring boats is very expensive. Southern right whales have become rare today[2]though whales were historically abundant[3] before they were wiped out by commercial and illegal hunts including mass illegal hunts by the Soviet Union and Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. Resident populations of the Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphin and the Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphin occur in the waters around the island. The bottlenose dolphin's abundance fluctuates seasonally, increasing during the austral winter. The humpback dolphin is more resident, living in extremely shallow inshore areas of the western and southern coasts, and form larger groups (11-14 dolphins) than recorded elsewhere in southern Africa. Bottlenose dolphins frequent the waters of the northwestern coast, and their group size varies largely from individuals and pairs to hundreds of dolphins. A very small, remaining population of dugong also occur here.[4][5][6] Two species of sea turtles (loggerheads and critically endangered leatherbacks) visit the eastern shores in summer to breed.

Inhaca is home to about 300 bird species, both resident and migratory. Species of conservation concern are the pink-backed pelican, lesser crested tern, crab plover, greater sand plover, Mongolian plover, Terek sandpiper, southern banded snake eagle, mangrove kingfisher, grey-rumped swallow and spotted ground-thrush. The southerly Nhaquene Swamp and Saco Bay are strongholds for the sooty falcon, while terns roost on northerly Portuguese Island 25°58′31″S 32°54′38″E. Bird species of limited distribution are Rudd's apalis, Neergaard's sunbird and pink-throated twinspot. House crows are present since the 1970s.


  • A natural history of Inhaca Island, Mozambique. William Macnae, Margaret Kalk, J de Koning, 1995
  • Birds of Inhaca Island, Mozambique. de Boer, WF & Bento, CM, 76pp, 1999.
    1. Jump up^ Para a História da Aliança Luso Britânica, by José be Almada, Imprensa Nacional de Lisboa 1955, pp 60-61
    5. Jump up^ //www.DUGONGS.ORG. SAVING ENDANGERED DUGONGS OF THE WESTERN INDIAN OCEAN. Retrieved on December 18. 2014
    6. Jump up^ Bandeira O.S.. Silva E.P.R.. Paula J.. Macia A.. Hernroth L.. Guissamulo T.A.. Gove Z.D.. Marine biological research in Mozambique: past, present and future.. University of Eduardo Mondlane on ResearchGate. Retrieved on December 18. 2014
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