地球上で最も神秘的で珍しい島々
地球上で最も神秘的で珍しい島々
Transcript
00:00Mother Nature has gone berserk.
00:03These islands don't even look real.
00:05Here are the 15 most unusual-looking islands on Earth.
00:15About 190 miles northeast of the Canadian city of Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories
00:20is the 7.7-square-mile West Island,
00:23which, until 2001, looked just like any other small outcrop of land in the region.
00:29It was found to be the site of a large deposit of diamonds, however,
00:32so in that year, the construction of the Javik Mine began,
00:35and transformed the look of the island forever.
00:38As well as the striking open pit, the facility also has a processing plant,
00:42power plants, accommodation for workers, and even a small airport,
00:46which is necessary because it's in such a remote region.
00:49Since opening, the site has been responsible for producing around 7 million carats of diamonds each year,
00:55including a 552-carat yellow diamond that was found in 2018,
00:59and it's the largest to have ever been discovered in North America.
01:09Just a 1,300-foot walk across a bridge from the Senegalese coastal town of Lyor,
01:14is one of the most unusual islands in the world.
01:17For hundreds of years, residents here have caught and sold mollusc meat,
01:20and discarded the shells into the water.
01:23As these remains got caught up in mangroves, boa bobs, and reeds,
01:26there are so many that they created an entirely new island, which is called Fagjorð.
01:31Wherever you walk, you hear the crunch of shells beneath your feet,
01:35and the buildings and roads have also used shells in their construction.
01:39One of the most famous sites on the island is the cemetery,
01:41which itself is completely made from shells too,
01:44in what lies as a testament to how much this coastal community
01:47has relied upon the natural resources that the ocean has provided to them.
01:5413. Isla La Gaiola, Italy
01:57Gaiola Island is off the coast of Naples in the Gulf of Naples,
02:01and is the center point of a protected marine reserve around the area.
02:05It's so close to the mainland that you can easily swim to it,
02:08and at one point there used to be a cable car that made the trip possible,
02:11without even getting wet.
02:13It has long been used as a site of importance,
02:15and was once covered in a series of Roman factories
02:18before the villa that still stands there today was built in the 19th century.
02:22Due to being formed by volcanic processes,
02:24the exposed rock faces a series of yellow and white colors,
02:27and ancient tunnels allow you to pass through the island from water level
02:31without having to climb up to its surface.
02:3712. Alcatraz
02:40The island of Alcatraz is in San Francisco Bay,
02:43around one and a quarter miles offshore from the city itself,
02:46and is one of the most famous prison sites in the U.S.
02:49Fortifications were first built there in the mid-19th century,
02:52and over the years further upgrades were made
02:54until it became the famed federal penitentiary in 1934.
02:58It was seen as the ideal place to hold dangerous criminals
03:02thanks to the freezing waters and strong currents that surrounded it,
03:05and during its operation only a handful of people have ever been claimed to have successfully escaped.
03:10Despite its closure in 1963,
03:12the human activity on the island is clear to see,
03:14and it remains to this day one of the most recognizable and unusual-looking islands on Earth.
03:2311. Vulcan Point, Philippines
03:26This unassuming small island is known as Vulcan Point,
03:29and it holds a series of records that mean it's unlike any other island you'll find elsewhere in the world.
03:35It's the largest island that lies within the lake that's on the summit of a volcano,
03:40which itself is within the lake that lies on an island,
03:43and as such is known as a third-order island.
03:47Despite its serene surroundings and popularity with tourists,
03:50it's a place to approach with extreme caution.
03:53To all volcano which lies within is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth,
03:57and has been linked to a thousands of deaths.
03:59Vulcan Point is actually a remains of one of the volcano's cones,
04:03and the lake that surrounds it is the largest crater lake in the world.
04:07There's always a chance another eruption is imminent,
04:10and this island may not be around for much longer.
04:1410. Kempfer's Dam
04:17Kempfer's Dam is a body of water to the north of the city of Kimberley in South Africa.
04:21It used to be a temporary water source,
04:23but thanks to the new constant release of runoff and treated water from the city,
04:27it's now become a permanent feature.
04:29Conservationists noticed that the way the region was changing was having an effect on the local wildlife,
04:35so it was decided to build an artificial S-shaped island in it.
04:39The shape was chosen because it created two artificial bays,
04:43and it was completed in September of 2006 after moving 26,000 tons of material to the site.
04:49The plan was a success, and the dam is now one of the most important breeding sites for lesser flamingos
04:55thanks to the presence of the algae and diatoms that they feed on.
04:58This often leads to the unusual sight of more than 20,000 of the birds huddled together on the island,
05:04something you won't see anywhere else.
05:09Number 9. Hashima Island, Japan
05:12Hashima Island is now abandoned,
05:14but it was once the center of Japan's industrial revolution.
05:18It was found to sit above vast coal deposits,
05:20so in 1887 it became the base of operations for a series of undersea mines.
05:25To support the works, seawall and land reclamation projects were undertaken,
05:29which tripled the size of the island,
05:31and four main shafts were dug,
05:33one of which actually connects Hashima Island to one of its neighbors.
05:36At its peak, more than 5,000 people lived there in the concrete structures,
05:40but by 1974 the coal reserves began to run out.
05:43With no other reason to be there, the people soon moved away,
05:47and it was left as a historical monument that year by year has slowly been reclaimed by nature.
05:52Now it's protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,
05:55and is often referred to as Battleship Island because of the way it now looks.
06:06Before we move on, be sure to subscribe to Top5s with notifications on.
06:13Number 8. Bishop Rock, UK
06:16Bishop Rock is an islet on the westernmost part of the Isles of Scilly,
06:20which are an archipelago that lies 28 miles off the southwestern coast of Britain.
06:25To warn approaching ships, an iron lighthouse was built on it in 1847, but was washed away,
06:31so a second one, which is the one that stands today, was constructed in 1858.
06:35With no room around the structure,
06:37it used to be the case that anyone leaving the island would have to rappel from the lighthouse into a waiting boat,
06:42and upon arriving they'd be lifted up by a winch.
06:45In 1976, a helipad was added to make transport easier,
06:49and as of 1992, it's fully automated, requiring only occasional maintenance visits.
06:54Bishop Rock currently holds the world record for being the world's smallest island with a building on it,
07:00and when you see how tight the fit is,
07:02you'll wonder whether it will be possible for anywhere else to claim this honor.
07:08Number 7. Tilafushi, Maldives
07:11We hear so much about the amount of trash that's produced every year,
07:15but did you know there's an island that's completely made of it?
07:18Called Tilafushi, it's in the Maldives and was created as a municipal landfill
07:22for all the waste that's created by the tourism industry elsewhere.
07:26The first loads were deposited in late 1992,
07:29and now the island covers an area of 4.6 million square feet.
07:33The waste is put in pits that have been dug into the shallow seabed,
07:37then covered in industrial waste and a layer of white sand.
07:40It's now become such a size that plots on the surface are rented by commercial operations
07:45such as boat manufacturers, cement producers, and methane bottlers,
07:49which means that this island that didn't even exist 30 years ago
07:52now generates more than a million dollars per year.
07:55Now around 330 tons of trash is brought to the island per day,
07:59which is raising concerns about the long-term viability of Tilafushi.
08:03Soon it may be necessary to stop using it as a landfill,
08:06and efforts might be even needed to remove everything that's been deposited there
08:10before it pollutes the surrounding marine environment.
08:17Number 6. The World, Dubai
08:20The World was a much-heralded artificial archipelago
08:24that was constructed 2.5 miles off the coast of Dubai
08:27and designed to look like a map of Earth.
08:29At an estimated cost of around $10 billion,
08:33there are 300 different islands, which are arranged into 7 different continents,
08:37and were formed from 386 million tons of rock and 321 million cubic meters of sand.
08:44Despite it seeming like a great idea at the time,
08:47construction began in 2003, but was forced to halt during the financial crisis of 2008.
08:52While many of the islands were reserved in principle,
08:55there simply weren't enough funds available to develop the intended buildings on them,
08:59and to this day only a few of them are in use.
09:02This means it's a rather peculiar site of a series of sandy islands,
09:06with an occasional one that has a structure on it.
09:08There are now concerns that many of the islands are sinking back into the water,
09:13and it's quite possible this will soon be remembered
09:15as one of the most expensive failed vanity projects that was ever undertaken.
09:23Number 5. The Island of Dolls, Mexico City
09:29The Island of Dolls is probably the creepiest island in the world
09:32thanks to a dark history that has led a number of unusual trinkets
09:36being displayed in the trees and buildings.
09:38It's to the south of Mexico City, in the waterways of Xochimilco,
09:42and was owned by Don Julian Santana in the 1950s.
09:45According to legend, a young woman was visiting the island,
09:48and while swimming in the canal she became entangled in the lilies and drowned.
09:52Her body was found on the banks of the island,
09:54and Santana began experiencing supernatural events.
09:57He kept hearing a voice calling out for her dolls,
10:00so began to collect dolls from garbage dumps that floated past in the water,
10:04and hung them on the branches of the trees around where she was discovered.
10:08Over the next 50 years he continued to do this,
10:11driven by fear that he was being haunted by her spirit,
10:15and resulted in hundreds of body parts and shrines being displayed across the island.
10:20He died in 2001, supposedly at the same site where the girl had died 50 years earlier,
10:25and since then the place has become a popular tourist destination.
10:28People visit with their own tributes for the island, and it continues to grow each year.
10:33Visitors describe an eerie silence around certain parts,
10:36feel chills and even hear voices, which adds to the mythology of the place,
10:41and has solidified it as being one of the most unusual looking islands on Earth.
10:55You'd normally think of an island as being a natural formation,
10:58or one that's been artificially created by moving hundreds of tons of rocks and sediment,
11:03but in Lake Titicaca in Bolivia there are around 120 islands that are completely different.
11:09They belong to the Uru people, whose ancestors laid claim to the waters of the lake.
11:14To help defend themselves and access remote regions to fish,
11:17they built a series of floating islands from reeds.
11:20This method is still used to this day, and it's amazing to see.
11:24They begin by making boats from Totora reeds,
11:26and then collect further reeds and roots that are tied together by rope.
11:30By building them up layer after layer, the floating platforms are up to 6 feet thick,
11:36by being tied to eucalyptus poles that are buried into the lake floor.
11:40The largest of the islands have room for homes of up to 10 families,
11:44and require a new layer to be added every few weeks to remain stable.
11:48The islands last for around 30 years before needing to be completely replaced,
11:52and are still the main residences for several hundred people.
11:56The surface of the island is soft.
11:58In each step you'll take, you'll notice your foot sinking a few inches.
12:02Unsurprisingly, they're now a popular tourist destination,
12:05and rather than working the lake for income,
12:07most residents now offer tours and lessons on how to prepare the reeds for construction.
12:16Naoshima Island is the largest island in Japan's Kagawa district,
12:20and is in the Seto Inland Sea.
12:22The town on the island has a population of just over 3,000 people,
12:26but it has become famous around the world for all of the art museums that are located there.
12:30The three most popular are the Chichu Art Museum, the Benesse House, and the James Bond Museum.
12:36But the island's embrace of the arts also means that installations can be seen everywhere.
12:41It's affectionately known as the Art Island,
12:44where various pieces commissioned by the world's leading artists
12:47are either displayed in public or in their own specially designed venues.
12:51The structures have been designed to look as natural as possible,
12:55and the only things that really stand out above the landscape is the colorful artwork.
12:59One of the most common things you'll see there are the pumpkins,
13:02one of which lies on the jetty you arrive on.
13:05But there's also a series of underground stone mazes,
13:08puzzles that are designed for visitors to figure out on their own,
13:11and a huge crypt that's lined with copper bars and has a giant sphere at the center.
13:16If you imagine your local museum of modern art, but arranged over an entire island,
13:20that's how Naoshima looks and feels,
13:23making it one of the most unique centers of culture you'll find anywhere in the world.
13:292. Socotra Island, Yemen
13:32Socotra Island has been called the closest place on Earth
13:35to what life would be like on an alien planet, and for good reason.
13:39Nestled within a four-island archipelago between the Gardafue Channel and the Arabian Sea,
13:44it's about 150 miles east of Somalia, but officially part of Yemen.
13:49Unusually for an island like this, Socotra wasn't formed by volcanic activity,
13:54but instead is continental land that detached from the Gondwana supercontinent around 20 million years ago.
14:00Because it has been separated from everywhere else for so long,
14:03it's developed its own unique flora and fauna,
14:06with 700 species that aren't found anywhere else,
14:09a number that's only eclipsed by New Zealand, New Caledonia, the Galapagos, and Hawaii.
14:15What's different there, however, is the extreme heat and lack of moisture
14:18that everything has evolved to survive in.
14:21Possibly the most famous tree that's endemic to the island is called the Dragon's Blood Tree,
14:25which looks like an umbrella shape and had a deep red sap that oozes out of it.
14:30Other unusual species include the Cucumber Tree, the Socotron Pomegranate, and various types of aloe.
14:37Deep caves have some of the most impressive stalagmite and stalactite formations on Earth,
14:42and some of the canyons and landscape look unlike anything you'll find anywhere else,
14:46hence why it's described as an alien island.
14:49Animal life is also peculiar on Socotra, and includes various endemic bird species,
14:53a number of reptiles such as skinks, legless lizards, and a species of chameleon,
14:58and a few spiders, including a tarantula that's only found on the island,
15:02and three unique species of crabs.
15:05The island is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,
15:08but it's far more difficult to visit than any other.
15:11Due to its political affiliation with Yemen,
15:13it's often reliant on donations from other countries to keep functioning.
15:17These communities that live on the island only have basic amenities.
15:21There is therefore very little tourism activity,
15:23and for those who visit, there are no hotels, and just a few guest houses to choose from.
15:28Locals even protest and try to avoid the construction of new roads,
15:32despite the benefits they may bring because of the damage they cause to the ecosystem,
15:36and this all adds up to help keep the island's unique appearance so well preserved.
15:41Number 1. Madagascar
15:44Madagascar lies around 250 miles off the eastern coast of Africa,
15:49and is the fourth largest island in the world.
15:51It's separated from the Indian subcontinent approximately 88 million years ago,
15:56and as a result, has been isolated from the rest of the world,
15:59which has allowed life to evolve in a different direction,
16:02and also the creation of highly unusual geographical structures.
16:0680% of the plant species there aren't found anywhere else in the world,
16:10and the same is true of around 90% of the animals too.
16:13There are forests of dry, deciduous trees, ones of spiny trees,
16:18and even a large forest of sharp, jagged limestone structures
16:21that are unlike anything you'll find elsewhere in the world.
16:24The island's position also makes it subject to unusual weather patterns,
16:28with warmer winds blowing across from the African continent
16:31that meet the cooler winds that travel over the vast emptiness of the Indian Ocean.
16:35If there's ever a place to visit to see something different,
16:38then Madagascar surely has to be it.
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