Baltra Island
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Baltra Island or Isla Baltra is a small island of the Galápagos Islands. Isla Baltra is often the first island visitors to the Galapagos Archipelago put their foot on as it is home to main the main airport, Seymour Airport. The airport was built by the Americans during the 1939-45 war (World War II). This island sits just 1 km off the northern coast of Isla Santa Cruz and has no real tourist attractions. It has an area of 27 sq. km.
Access to Santa Cruz Island is across the Itabaca Channel. The island serves as a small navy base for Ecuador.
[edit] Wildlife
Baltra is currently not within the boundaries of the Galapagos National Park. The Galapagos Land Iguana is the subject of an active re-introduction campaign on the island; it became extinct on Baltra sometime in the mid-1900s. Luckily, visiting scientists in the early 1900s had translocated a population of Baltra Land Iguanas from Baltra to North Seymour Island, a smaller island just a few hundred metres north of Baltra. The Iguanas survived, and became the breeding stock for a successful Charles Darwin Research Station captive breeding programme.
[edit] External links
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