Europa Island

Europa is a low coral island in the Mozambique Channel, between Madagascar and the African mainland. A reef and sandy beaches surround the island, while a broad mangrove forest fringes its northeastern lagoon. Seabirds nest ashore and green turtles come to lay their eggs. In December 1774 the crew of the British ship Europa gave the island the name of their vessel; in 1828 a French navigator proposed calling it Île d'Europe.