Why is the center of the heart bare?

It is a salt flat too salty for trees

Why are mangroves important for coasts?

They protect shores and shelter young fish

Heart of Voh Quiz: New Caledonia's Mangrove Heart From the Air

This Heart of Voh quiz flies over the mangroves of New Caledonia to see one of the world's most famous natural shapes. Play 10 interactive questions on Voh on Grande Terre, how a salt flat makes the clearing, mangrove trees that live in seawater, Yann Arthus-Bertrand's aerial photograph, the UNESCO lagoon, and how to see the heart from the air.

Start Heart of Voh Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Territory
Where is the Heart of Voh?
Island
Which main island is it on?
Forest
What kind of forest surrounds the heart?
Clearing
Why is the center of the heart bare?
Trees
What can mangrove trees do?
Photo
Which photographer made the heart famous?
Book
What was the name of his famous book?
View
How is the heart best seen?
Lagoon
What did UNESCO list in New Caledonia in 2008?
Role
Why are mangroves important for coasts?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Where is the Heart of Voh?
Answer: New Caledonia
It is a French territory in the Pacific.
Q2: Which main island is it on?
Answer: Grande Terre
It lies on the west coast.
Q3: What kind of forest surrounds the heart?
Answer: Mangrove forest
It grows in tidal mud.
Q4: Why is the center of the heart bare?
Answer: It is a salt flat too salty for trees
Evaporation leaves salt behind.
Q5: What can mangrove trees do?
Answer: Grow in salty tidal water
They have special roots.
Q6: Which photographer made the heart famous?
Answer: Yann Arthus-Bertrand
His aerial book used it on the cover.
Q7: What was the name of his famous book?
Answer: Earth from Above
It was published in 1999.
Q8: How is the heart best seen?
Answer: From the air
Helicopters and small planes fly over.
Q9: What did UNESCO list in New Caledonia in 2008?
Answer: Its lagoons and reefs
The lagoon is one of the world's largest.
Q10: Why are mangroves important for coasts?
Answer: They protect shores and shelter young fish
They also store carbon.

A Heart Drawn in the Mangroves

The Heart of Voh is a natural clearing shaped like a heart inside a mangrove forest near the town of Voh on Grande Terre, New Caledonia's main island. It is best seen from the air, by helicopter or small plane, and has become one of the world's most famous natural shapes.

The bare center is a salt flat. Water evaporates in the hot sun, leaving soil too salty even for mangroves, while trees grow around its edges where tides keep salt lower. Mangroves are adapted to salty tidal water, protecting coasts from storms and sheltering young fish.

French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand made the heart famous with an aerial photograph used on the cover of his 1999 book Earth from Above. New Caledonia's lagoons and reefs, among the largest in the world, were listed by UNESCO in 2008.

What This Quiz Teaches

Nature and photography fans will enjoy these questions.

Where the heart is
Why the center is bare
How mangroves survive
Who photographed it
How to see it

Did You Know?

Microlight flights circle the heart.
A hiking trail leads to a viewpoint.
Crabs dig burrows in mangrove mud.
The shape shifts slightly over time.
Voh is a small rural town.