Desventuradas Islands

The Desventuradas Islands are in the ocean.

They sit near the coast of Chile. No people live there all the time. The Chilean Navy stays on one island.

These islands have trees and shrubs. There is no fresh water to drink. Many birds make nests on the land. Some of these birds are in danger. It is a special place for them.

The Desventuradas Islands are in the Pacific Ocean. They sit off the coast of Chile.

There are four small islands in this group. They are San Ambrosio, San Félix, Islote González, and Roca Catedral. No regular people live on the islands. A small group from the Chilean Navy stays on San Félix. This island also has an airport.

The islands look very different from each other. San Félix and San Ambrosio are the largest. They have trees and shrubs. Some areas have bare rock. There is no fresh water to drink on any island. This makes life hard for many things. Many birds live here. Ten types of sea birds visit the islands. One type of bird lives on the land. Some of these birds are in danger. This place is very important for birds like the Masatierra petrel. The ocean currents help keep the islands separate from South America.

The Desventuradas Islands are a small group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They sit northwest of Santiago, off the coast of Chile. This group is part of a region called Insular Chile. There are four main parts in this island group. They are San Ambrosio, San Félix, Islote González, and Roca Catedral. Because they are so far away, no regular people live there. However, a small group from the Chilean Navy stays on San Félix. This island also has an airport for planes to land.

The islands have a very special way of looking. San Félix and San Ambrosio are the largest islands. They have many trees, shrubs, and ferns. You might also see bare rocks and small plants. One special shrub called Sonchus laceratus grows only here. There is no fresh water to drink on any of the islands. This makes the islands a tough place for many living things. The ocean current called the Humboldt Current flows nearby. This current acts like a barrier between the islands and South America.

No one knows exactly when people first saw these islands. Some think Ferdinand Magellan might have seen them in 1521. The first real sighting was by Juan Fernández in 1574. He was sailing from Callao to Valparaíso at that time. Later, the islands were named after Saint Felix and Saint Nabor. Over time, the name Nabor became confused with Saint Ambrose. This is how the island San Ambrosio got its name.

These islands are quite small in size. The total area of all the islands is 5.36 square kilometers. San Ambrosio is the tallest place, reaching 479 meters high. San Félix is also large and has a peak called Cerro Amarillo. This peak is 193 meters tall. The smallest part is Roca Catedral, which is only 0.01 square kilometers. Even though they are small, they are very important for nature. They are a special place for many different kinds of animals.

Many animals call these islands their home. There are ten types of sea birds that live here. There is also one type of bird that lives on the land. Some of these birds are endangered, which means they need extra help to survive. The islands are a very important place for Masatierra petrels to nest. Because so many birds live here, it is a protected area. This helps keep the island life safe for a long time.

The Desventuradas Islands are a small group of oceanic islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are located northwest of Santiago, off the coast of Chile. These islands are officially considered part of Insular Chile. The group is composed of four distinct landmasses. These include San Ambrosio, San Félix, Islote González, and Roca Catedral. Because they are so isolated, there are no permanent civilian settlements. However, a detachment of the Chilean Navy stays on Isla San Félix. This island also contains the Isla San Felix Airport.

The islands consist of several different sizes and elevations. San Ambrosio is the largest and highest island in the group. It covers an area of 3.1 square kilometers. Its peak reaches an elevation of 479 meters. The San Félix group includes the island of San Félix. This island covers 2 square kilometers. Its highest point is Cerro Amarillo, which is 193 meters tall. Islote González is a much smaller island with an area of 0.25 square kilometers. It has a peak of 173 meters. The smallest feature is Roca Catedral. It has an area of only 0.01 square kilometers and a height of 53 meters. In total, the archipelago covers 5.36 square kilometers.

The ecology of the larger islands is quite complex. The vegetation forms a miniature mosaic of different plant life. You can find matorral, which is a type of shrubland, across the land. There are also areas of barren rock. Trees, shrubs, ferns, and perennial herbs grow together in various sizes. One specific plant, Sonchus laceratus, is an endemic species. This means it grows naturally only in this specific location. The large islands of San Félix and San Ambrosio host a temperate forest biome. This biome is recognized by the WWF as being critical for nature.

Water and currents play a major role in the island environment. There are no permanent sources of fresh water on any of the islands. This lack of water affects what can live there. The marine fauna shows close links to the central and south Pacific. These animals are more similar to those in the central Pacific than to those in South America. This happens because of the Humboldt Current. This ocean current acts as a powerful biogeographic barrier. It separates the islands from the South American continent.

Vertebrates on the two largest islands are limited only to birds. There are ten species of marine birds that visit or nest there. There is also one species of land bird. Some of these species are currently endangered. The islands are recognized as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International. This is because they serve as a breeding site for many Masatierra petrels. These birds rely on the islands for their survival. The isolation of the islands helps protect these large numbers of birds.

The history of the islands involves several different eras. No evidence shows prehistoric human activity by Polynesians or Indigenous peoples. The islands were likely unoccupied in pre-Columbian times. Ferdinand Magellan may have seen them as early as 1521. The first confirmed sighting was by Juan Fernández on November 6, 1574. He was traveling from Callao to Valparaíso. In 1579, Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa noted they were named after Saint Felix and Saint Nabor. Over time, the name Nabor became confused with Saint Ambrose. This resulted in the name San Ambrosio.

In more recent history, the islands have played political roles. In 1788, the abbot Giovanni Ignazio Molina included them in Chilean territory. This was part of his work on the geography of the Kingdom of Chile. This helped establish the islands as part of the territory inherited by Chile. During the Falklands War in May 1982, San Félix was also relevant. The Chilean government allowed an RAF Nimrod R1 to fly reconnaissance sorties from the island. These flights gathered information on the movements of the Argentine Air Force. This shows how even small, remote islands can be important in global events.