CAY (kee)
A
small, low island consisting mostly of sand or coral
Common
clues: Islet;
Small island; Low island; Coral reef; Little island
Crossword
puzzle frequency:
once a year
Frequency
in English language:
49626 / 86800
Video: Half
Moon Cay, Bahamas
A cay (also spelled key or quay; all are pronounced alike as "key") is a small, low island consisting mostly of sand or coral. Cays often occur in tropical environments, such as the Caribbean, the Great Barrier Reef and the Belize Barrier Reef.
Heron
Island, Australia
Sand cays are formed when tidal action, wind and sea birds deposit coral debris and sand onto reef flats over a long period of time. These deposits usually occur on the leeward side of the reef, but occasionally made on the windward side. Weather affects the formation of cays greatly; large tides would bring much more debris onto the cay and thus make it larger, while a hurricane could completely obliterate a cay.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Cay".
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