Aitutaki is a type of atoll, a coral reef formed upon the rim of a submerged volcanic crater. Strung along this reef are tiny islands called "motu." In the center of the lagoon inside the reef is the main land mass, the 7 x 1.5 mile main island which rises to about 480 feet and has a population of about 1,900. Islanders live in several villages. Almost all traditional housing has been replaced by building materials shipped in from New Zealand. Archeological sites contain ruins of "marae," Polynesian temples. The motu contain many sea bird nesting areas and the lagoon is free of sharks, but has abundant marine life. Aitutaki is supplied monthly by a cargo ship which anchors off the reef and must be laboriously unloaded container by container onto little barges which then thread a narrow passage through the reef to the principal dock at Arutanga town.
