West Falkland

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West Falkland (shown in red) within the Falkland archipelago

West Falkland (Spanish: Gran Malvina) is the second largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, with an area of approximately 4,532 km² (5,413 km² including the adjacent small islands). It is a hilly island, separated from East Falkland by the Falkland Sound.

1 Population
2 History
3 Geography and wildlife
4 External links
5 References

[edit] Population

The island has a population of fewer than 200 people, scattered around the coastline. The largest settlement is Port Howard on the east coast, which has an airstrip. Other settlements include Albemarle, Chartres, Dunnose Head, Fox Bay, Fox Bay West, Hill Cove, Port Stephens, and Roy Cove, most of which are linked by road and also have airstrips and harbours.

[edit] History

In 1867 there were no settlers on the west island, and the government issued a proclamation offering leases of grazing stations on very moderate terms. In 1868 all the available land was occupied.

West Falkland saw little action during the Falklands War in 1982. These days it is also home to two RAF Reporting Posts: Mount Alice, which is near Port Albermarle in the south of the island, and Mount Byron in the north. These military units are openly listed in the RAF document "RAF Today" (see below).

[edit] Geography and wildlife

West Falkland is more hilly near the east island; the principal mountain range, the Hornby Hills, runs north and south parallel with Falkland Sound. Mount Adam, the highest hill in the islands, is 2315 ft. high. Although it is called "Gran Malvina" in Spanish, it is actually the smaller and less populated of the two main islands, by total land area.

The major industry on the island is sheep farming, while it is also known for its penguin and cormorant colonies. Fishing is also popular in the two main rivers, the Warrah and the Chartres.

In the 19th century as today, indigenous land fauna was very scanty. A small wolf, the warrah, the loup-renard of Louis Antoine de Bougainville, is extinct, the last having been seen about 1875 on the West Falkland. It is commemorated in the name of one of the island's river, the "Warrah". Some herds of cattle and horses ran wild; but these were, of course, introduced, as were also the wild hogs, the numerous rabbits and the less common hares. All these have greatly declined in numbers, being profitably replaced by sheep.

The southernmost point of West Falkland is Cape Meredith, and the most south-westerly Calm Head. On the southerly side lie high cliffs with an abundance of seabirds and to the west are some white sandy beaches with beautiful clean water and rolling sand dunes with tall grass. Set just back from the top of the cliffs is a single wooden hut locally referred to as Uncle Tom's Cabin. The beaches are a favourite haunt for elephant seals and are unpolluted save for the occasional piece of wreckage and the odd washed-up tree trunk.