Where is the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon located?

Rock Islands Southern Lagoon of Palau covers 100,200 ha (247599 acres) and includes 445 uninhabited limestone islands of volcanic origin with an aggregate area of 42 square kilometers (16 sq mi) and a maximum height of 207 meters (679 ft). Many of them display unique mushroom-like shapes in turquoise lagoons surrounded by coral reefs. The site contains a complex reef system featuring over 385 coral species. It also sustains a large diversity of plants, birds and marine life including at least thirteen shark species. The site harbors the highest concentration of marine lakes anywhere, isolated bodies of seawater separated from the ocean by land barriers. It is located in the southwest corner of Micronesia.

The remains of stonework villages, as well as burial sites and rock art, bear testimony to the organization of small island communities over some three millennia. The villages were abandoned in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The unusual shapes of many of the islands come from erosion and from the dense community of sponges, bivalves, chitons, snails, urchins, and others that graze mostly on algae.

The islands and surrounding reefs include Palau's most popular tourist sites including Jellyfish Lake, one of many marine lakes in the Rock Islands. Home to several kinds of stingless jellyfish found only in Palau.

The only inhabited place on the islands is called Dolphin Bay, the location of Palau's national aquatics park, and hosts headquarters of Palau's Park rangers.