SANTA MARA ISLAND

also called Charles Island one of the southernmost Galpagos Islands, in the eastern Pacific Ocean, about 600 mi (965 km) west of Ecuador. Originally named for the British king Charles II, it is also known as Isla Floreana, but the official Ecuadorian name is Isla Santa Mara. The island, with an area of 64 sq mi (166 sq km), has central volcanic craters reaching an altitude of 1,800 ft (550 m) and sloping verdant hills leading to the sandy shore. It was the site of the first Galpagos settlements and of an 18th-century whaler's post office. In 1832 Gen. Jos Villamil claimed the Galpagos for Ecuador and established a colony for political prisoners. Norwegian immigrants settled on Santa Mara in 1927 but did not remain. Fruit, subsistence crops, cattle, and fishing are the economic activities of small settlements. Pop. (1980 est.) 57.