Hatohobei
Large stands of coconut palms line the beaches forming the primary resource for the only industry on the islands: copra production.Even so, the natives retain a strong sense of cultural pride in their heritage and a firm commitment to their islands.Most of the houses are situated in the abandoned village of Tobi (Hatohobei) on the southwestern side of the island, the state capital.Helen Island was discovered by the Spanish naval officer Felipe Tompson in 1773, who charted it as San Felix shoal.It is tiny in comparison to Helen Reef, about 20 to 40 m wide and 400 m long, or about 0.03 km² of land area.The densely wooded island sits atop a sand dune, which is 0.25 km² in extent and which is moving southeast, falling into the lagoon, at a rate 3 to 4 m per year.The literal translation of its Tobian name Pieraurou is "Sandy Navigation Point", referring to a submerged sand bar rather than a reef or island.The surrounding ocean provided the primary source of protein and was probably intensely exploited prehistorically.Given the limited amount of land, it is expected that almost all of it would have been intensively exploited by settlement or subsistence activities.
Helen's ReefGovernorPalauanEnglishTobianISO 3166 codestatesSonsoroleseadministrative subdivisionHouse of Delegates of PalauAngaurphosphate miningcoconutNgerekebesangSonsorolSouthwest IslandsTobi (island)capitalrookerylagoonrangerImportant Bird AreaBirdLife Internationalbreeding colonyblack noddiesgreater crested ternsexistence as islandCaroline IslandsTobian languageSeacologyStates of PalauAimeliikKayangelMelekeokNgaraardNgarchelongNgardmauNgaremlenguiNgatpangNgchesarNgiwalPeleliu