North
Maluku
North Maluku is a province of Indonesia. It covers
the northern part of Maluku Islands, which are split
between it and Maluku Province. Maluku Province
used to cover the entire group. The planned provincial
is Sofifi, on Halmahera, but the current capital
and largest population is Ternate Island. So, the
capital of North Maluku is Ternate.
In
the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the islands
of North Maluku were the original "Spice
Islands". At the time, the region was the
sole source of cloves. The Dutch, Portuguese,
Spanish, and local kingdoms including Ternate
and Tidore fought each other for control of the
lucrative trade in these spices. Nutmeg trees
have since been transported and replanted all
around the world and the demand for nutmeg from
the original spice islands has ceased, greatly
reducing North Maluku's international importance.
In
North Maluku the land makes up just 15 percent
of the area's total surface. In many places the
surrounding seas could be thousands of meters
deep. North Maluku is in a transition zone between
the Asian and Australian fauna and flora, and
also between the Malay-based cultures of western
Indonesia and those of Melanesia.
A
great variety of endemic plant and animal species
are found in the rugged forest-covered and mountainous
hinterlands of most of the islands. A few of the
best known are the Rucker-tailed Kingfisher, the
Red-crested Moluccan Cockatoo and various brilliantly
colored lorikeets and parrots.
North
Maluku sits astride one of the world's most volatile
volcanic belts. The region has known more than
70 eruptions in the last 400 years. Tremors and
volcanic eruptions are by no means rare events
at present. Many islands, in fact, look from a
distance like volcanic cones rising right out
of the sea.
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Information
and pictures courtesy of Indonesia Tourism. |
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