Îles Maria or simply Maria, also known as Hull Island[1], is a small coral atoll in the Pacific Ocean. Its original name is Nororotu. The nearest land is Rimatara situated 205 km to the ESE.
The atoll consists of four islets (îles), with a dense atoll forest[2] and a very shallow lagoon, supporting numerous bird species.[3] The island is uninhabited now, but at one time was the site of a penal colony.[4] Copra is occasionally harvested at the island.[3]
The Îles Maria should not be confused with Maria Atoll in the Gambier Islands, also in French Polynesia, which is sometimes differentiated with the name "Maria Est" (East).[5] There is also another island once known as Hull Island in the Phoenix Islands, which is now known as Orona.
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This atoll is named for the whaler Maria, who sighted the island in 1824.[3], which was captained by George Washington Gardner, a Nantucket sea captain (1778-1838).[6]
The atoll Îles Maria is administratively part of Rimatara commune (municipality) in the Tubuai (Austral Islands) division of French Polynesia.
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