REVILLAGIGEDO ISLANDS

archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 300 miles (500 km) south-southwest of the tip of the Baja California peninsula and 370 miles (595 km) west-southwest of Cape Corrientes on the Mexican mainland. The islands are administered by Colima state, Mexico. Covering a total land area of 320 square miles (830 square km), the archipelago consists of numerous volcanic islands. The largest, Socorro, which rises to an elevation of 3,707 feet (1,130 m), is 24 miles (39 km) long and 9 miles (14 km) wide. San Benedicto, 40 miles (64 km) north of Socorro, and Clarin, 250 miles (400 km) west of Socorro, are the two other large islands; small islands include Roca Partida, 60 miles (100 km) west of Socorro, and Roca Oneal, just off the northwestern coast of Socorro. In 1957 an outpost was established on long-uninhabited Socorro, and trees were planted for timber and fruit. The expedition found about 8,000 sheep on the island, the residue of a temporary Australian settlement of the mid-1800s. The Revillagigedo Islands are rich in sulfur, fish, and guano.