environment (water quality, tranquillity) and is very sensitive to disturbance. The Pekelmeer and the flamingo reserve have been designated as a water area of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. Bonaire will continue to actively protect the flamingo, the symbol of the island. Salt pans and caves Salt pans are salt lakes or inlets that are closed to the sea by a dead coral dyke. They have an important function because they ensure the collection and filtration of (rain) water. This prevents nutrients and soil particles from reaching the reef and causing damage to the corals. This function is especially crucial during heavy rainfall. The salt pans are also an important feeding ground for many waterbirds. Slagbaai, Gotomeer, Pekelmeer and the Klein Bonaire salt pans are aquatic areas of international importance in the context of the Ramsar Convention. Bonaire has many dozens of caves. As a geological manifestation they give a picture of the oldest history of the island. In several places the caves have cave drawings made by the original inhabitants of Bonaire. Some caves are home to bats or the blind shrimp Typhlatya. Bats play a useful role in the ecosystem: they trap a large number of insects (including mosquitoes) or provide pollination of flowers, including cactus flowers. The greatest threat to bats is the destruction or disturbance of their roosts. Geology Bonaire lies on the Caribbean Plate, a tectonic plate bounded by four other tectonic plates: the North American Plate, the Cocos Plate, the Nazca Plate and the South American Plate. Bonaire as an island was formed in the Tertiary when the Caribbean plate boundary (the volcanic arc that formed the Caribbean islands to the east) shifted eastward. The geology of Bonaire is dominated by gently dipping carbonate rocks ranging in age from Cretaceous (≈90-100 million years ago (Ma)) to Miocene (≈5 Ma), which lie unconformably on a pre-Cretaceous igneous basement. Where the unconformity corresponds with sea-level erosion, caves are common. Government 2010 referendum Prior to the 2010 referendum, the Netherlands Antilles (comprising the islands of Curaçao, Bonaire, St. Eustatius, St. Maarten and Saba) were governed as a parliamentary democracy based on the Dutch system of government with free elections held every four years. Dissension about their political future resulted in four of the five islands advocating for separation from the Netherlands Antilles. Some of the island residents wanted autonomy while others wanted more integration. In 2005