Geology of Malta The largest of the second set are the Victoria Lines Fault on northern Malta and the Qala Fault on southern Gozo. Overall, the islands of the archipelago are tilted towards the northeast, with cliffs on the southwest coast and descending gradients towards the northeast. The Maltese archipalego is linked to Sicily by an underwater plateau of depths of less than 100 m. During different marine regressions of the Mediterranean, Malta has been connected to Sicily by a surface isthmus by which animals have been able to cross, as evinced by the presence of island dwarfism (Maltese dwarf hippopotamus and dwarf
Dampier Archipelago Dampier Archipelago The Dampier Archipelago is a group of islands near Dampier, Western Australia. It is named after William Dampier, an English buccaneer and explorer who visited in 1699. Dampier named one of the islands, Rosemary Island. The largest island (or peninsula) in the group was known as "Murujuga" by the earliest inhabitants, the Yaburara (or Jaburara) people. The first British settlers renamed it Dampier Island and it was later officially renamed Burrup Peninsula. Despite being a region through which considerable shipping and industrial activity occurs, the archipelago has considerable marine resources. In 1868, the area was the site of