The Formigas (pron. IPA: [fuɾ'migɐʃ]) are islets of the Azores, Portugal. Located 43 km northeast of Santa Maria Island and southeast of São Miguel Island, they have special biological interest and a natural reserve with 35.42 km². The size of the emerged islets is about 9,000 m². The islets are part of the eastern group of the Azores archipelago. The islets are in the northwest part of a 13 km bank of extension and 5.5 km wide. The island runs from northwest to southeast. The island does not have any plants or animals. Dollabarat, a reef is situated 3 nautical miles (5 km) southwest from the Formigas Islets. The coastline is about 22 km (12 nm), visibility is exceptional. Look up pronunciation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words see here. ... Mōkōlea Rock in Kailua Bay, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i, 2. ... Motto: Antes morrer livres que em paz sujeitos (Rather die free than in peace subjugated) Anthem: A Portuguesa (national) Hino dos Açores (local) Capital Ponta Delgada (Presidency of the Regional Government) Angra do Heroísmo (Supreme Court)1 Horta (Legislative Assembly)2 Largest city Ponta Delgada Official languages Portuguese... The island of Santa Maria (Portuguese for Saint Mary) is an island located in the southeastern part of the Azores and is the southernmost island in the Azores Islands. ... São Miguel on a NASA satellite photo, with North to the top. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A nature reserve (natural reserve, nature preserve, natural preserve) is an area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research. ... Ordinal directions are the four compass directions: northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest, located halfway between the cardinal directions. ... The Dollabarat Islets are situated 5 km (3 nautical miles) south southeast of the Formigas Islets in the Azores archipelago. ...

Overview

The nature reserve was formed in 1988 from a decree of the Azorean Parliament (Regional Legislative Decree #11/88/A of April 4). 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Formigas are very helpful for navigation. The visibility around the lighthouse is 19 km (10 nmi). During foggy days and without radar, the lighthouse can be used from the Dollabarat.

Formigas is the Portuguese for Ants, because the islets are many and small, some being pure rocks in the ocean. The islets are useful for navigation, visible up to 19 km away during sunlight, but in foggy days one can run aground without seeing the lighthouse (built in 1883) of the islets predicting the dangers of the islets. Surrounding the islets there are several hidden dangers; the depth of the islets group is never deeper than 30 meters, with the exception of a small point in the southwest, the Dollabarat, where there is only a small area that lies 3 metres deep. The rocks extend about 700 m from north and south of the lighthouse. The Decree of March 2, 1895 for the general meeting of the Autonomous District of Ponta Delgada initiated the construction of lighthouses in the islands of São Miguel and Santa Maria. A small uncovered wharf was built in the summer of 1948. The lighthouse was modernized and rebuilt in 1962 by a shipmaker Almirante Schultz. The lighthouse is located in the southern part of the Formigas in a zone that is 3 m above the mean sea level. The height is 19 m and the top of the lighthouse sits 22 m above sea level. The lighthouse was updated, with acetylene substituted for the photovoltaic feed. The lighthouse is one of the ex-libris of Azorean lighthouses, marking the characteristic profiles in the oceanic landscape of the Formigas. It can be sighted around 22 km (12 nmi) of distance. During the days of normal visibilities, the lighthouse can be seen from the southeastern part of the island of São Miguel and the northeastern part of the island of Santa Maria. Subfamilies Aenictogitoninae Agroecomyrmecinae Amblyoponinae (incl. ... The worlds oceans as seen from the South Pacific Ocean, before the definition of the Southern Ocean in 2000 For other uses, see Ocean (disambiguation). ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ...

One of the smallest but one of the highest islets lies only 11 meters above the sea level, and it’s named "Formigão" (big ant). The two biggest islets are only 180 meters long and 40 meters wide.

References

• Sarmento Rodrigues, M. M., (1970, Ancoradouros das Ilhas dos Açores, Instituto Hidrográfico (Hydrographic Institute), 3rd edition, Lisbon, 255.

Manuel Maria Sarmento Rodrigues (1899 - 1979) was a marine official, a colonist and a professor. ...

Geography

• Location:
  • Latitude: 37.2667 (27°16') N
  • Longitude: 24.85 (24°51') W

External links

• Map and aerial photos
  • Street map from Mapquest
  • Aerial photograph from Microsoft Terraserver

Municipalities of the Azores Autonomous Region
Corvo: Corvo Faial: Horta Flores: Lajes das Flores · Santa Cruz das Flores Graciosa: Santa Cruz da Graciosa Pico: Lajes do Pico · Madalena · São Roque do Pico Santa Maria: Vila do Porto São Jorge: Calheta · Velas São Miguel: Lagoa · Nordeste · Ponta Delgada · Povoação · Ribeira Grande · Vila Franca do Campo Terceira: Angra do Heroísmo · Vila da Praia da Vitória

Coordinates: 37°16′N 24°51′W Motto: Antes morrer livres que em paz sujeitos (Rather die free than in peace subjugated) Anthem: A Portuguesa (national) Hino dos Açores (local) Capital Ponta Delgada (Presidency of the Regional Government) Angra do Heroísmo (Supreme Court)1 Horta (Legislative Assembly)2 Largest city Ponta Delgada Official languages Portuguese... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Azores. ... Corvo Island (Portuguese, Ilha do Corvo, lit. ... Coat of Arms Corvo is both a parish and a municipality in northwestern part of the Azores. ... Faial Island (also known in English as Fayal) is a Portuguese island of the Central group (Grupo Central) of the Azores. ... Horta is both a parish and a district in western part of the Azores. ... Flores Island is an island of the Azores, a Portuguese archipelago. ... Lajes das Flores is both a parish and a district in western part of the Azores. ... Santa Cruz das Flores is both a municipality in the Western part of the Azores. ... Graciosa Island, also known as White Island, belongs to the Central Group of the Archipelago of the Azores. ... Santa Cruz da Graciosa is both a municipality and a parish in the Northern part of the Azores. ... Pico Island (Portuguese: Ilha do Pico, pron. ... Coat of Arms Lajes do Pico (pron. ... Madalena is both a parish and a district in western part of the Azores. ... São Roque do Pico is both a parish and a district in southern part of the Azores. ... The island of Santa Maria (Portuguese for Saint Mary) is an island located in the southeastern part of the Azores and is the southernmost island in the Azores Islands. ... Vila do Porto is the main village on the island of Santa Maria, part of the archipelago of the Azores. ... São Jorge (pron. ... Calheta (pron. ... Coat of Arms Velas is a municipality in the Northern part of the Azores. ... São Miguel on a NASA satellite photo, with North to the top. ... colspan=2 bgcolor=#FFDEAD | Lagoa Lagoa (Portuguese for lagoon) is a city on the southwest-central part of São Miguel Island in the Azores It has a population of 14,126 (as of 2001). ... Nordeste (Portuguese for northeast hence the part of the island) is a city on the northeastern part of São Miguel Island in the Azores It has a population of 6,726 (as of 2001). ... Image:Ponta delgada noite. ... Povoação (Portuguese for of the fields) is a city on the southern part of São Miguel Island in the Azores It has a population of 6,726 (as of 2001). ... There is also Ribeira Grande in Cape Verde, see Ribeira Grande, Cape Verde Ribeira Grande (Portuguese for large river) is a city on the southwest-central part of São Miguel Island in the Azores It has a population of 28,482 (as of 2001). ... Vila Franca do Campo (pron. ... Map of Terceira Island, Azores. ... Location    - Country Portugal    - Region A.R. of Azores  - Subregion A.R. of Azores  - District or A.R. A.R. of Azores Mayor José Cardoso  - Party PS Area 239. ... Praia da Vitória is a town in Portugals Autonomous Region of the Azores, (Região Autónoma dos Açores) on the eastern fringe of the island of [[Terceira]. It is the second largest town on the island, after Angra do Heroísmo. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...