Tied island

 

View from the Isle of Portland looking towards the mainland of Great Britain. Chesil Beach on the left connects the tied island to the mainland.

St. Ninians Isle- a tied island in all but the highest tides

Tied islands, or land-tied islands, as they are often known, are a landform where the island is only connected to land by a tombolo—a spit of beach materials connected to land at both ends. The Isle of Portland on the south coast of England is an example of this; it was once an island but is now linked to the mainland by Chesil Beach. Other examples include St. Ninian's Isle, Shetland; North Island, San Diego, California; and Barrenjoey, New South Wales in Australia. Tied Islands such as Wedge Island in Western Australia, provide a habitat and an excluded area for birds and small species to escape the threat of wild feral animals that have been introduduced by westerners into the delicate environment.

References

• Glossary of geology and related sciences. Jesse V. Howell, American Geological Institute. 1962.
• Some Coastal Landform Definitions. Matthew Flinders, Villanova College, Queensland.

External links

• Media related to Tied islands at Wikimedia Commons

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Edited by: cribby