| Îlots des Apôtres | |
| Nickname: | Apostle Islets |
| Coordinates: | -45.955°N 50.425°W |
| Area Km2: | 2.011 |
| Highest Mount: | Mont Pierre |
| Elevation M: | 289 |
| Population: | Uninhabited |
| Country: | France |
The Îlots des Apôtres or Îles des Apôtres (en|Apostle Islets or Islands) are a group of small and uninhabited rocky islands in the north-western part of the Crozet Archipelago in the southern Indian Ocean, north of Île aux Cochons. Their total area is about .
There are two larger islands (Île Grande - Big Island, and Île Petite - Little Island), together occupying almost 90 percent of the area. The highest peak is Mont Pierre (on Île Grande. In addition, there are about 20 rocks, with elevations between . The islands are very steep. Despite their small size, Île Grande reaches a height of, and Île Petite .
On the night of 1 July 1875, the Strathmore, a three-masted ship sailing between the United Kingdom and New Zealand, was wrecked in the vicinity after striking a reef. Of the 89 passengers on board, 44 survived on Île Grande until 21 January 1876, when they were rescued by another ship.[1]
The islets have been identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International as a breeding site for seabirds, with at least 25 species nesting there. The birds include wandering, grey-headed, light-mantled, sooty, black-browed and Indian yellow-nosed albatrosses, great-winged, soft-plumaged, white-chinned and blue petrels, medium-billed prions, northern giant petrels, common diving petrels, Crozet blue-eyed shags and Kerguelen terns.[2]
| Island or rock | English name | Area(ha) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Îlots des Apôtres | Apostle Islets | 201.1 | |
| Rocher Nord | Northern Rock | 6.0 | |
| L’Enclume | The Anvil | 1.5 | |
| Grande Île | Big Island | 150.0 | |
| Le Clown | The Clown | 0.4 | |
| La Sentinelle perdue | The Lost Sentinel | 0.2 | |
| Les Jumeaux | The Twins | 0.5 | |
| Rocher Fendu | Split Rock | 3.0 | |
| Petite Île | Little Island | 30.0 | |
| Les Sentinelles du Diable | The Devil's Sentinels | 1.0 | |
| La Grande Aiguille | Big Needle | 1.0 | |
| La Petite Aiguille | Little Needle | 0.2 | |
| Le Hangar | The Hangar | 1.5 | |
| Le Donjon | The Keep | 2.5 | |
| Rocher Sud | Southern Rock | 1.5 | |
| Le Torpilleur | The Destroyer | 0.1 | |
| Le Caillou | The Stone | 0.4 | |
| L'Obélisque | The Obelisk | 0.3 | |
| Rocher Percé | Bored Rock | 1.0 |
also see "This barren rock", by Silvie Haisman., also a radio play on the ABC National radio - tell me a shipwreck