Pitcairn Islands
The Pitcairn Islands comprise an isolated and remote group of 2 small islands and 2 atolls located in the far eastern regions of Polynesia — they can be considered as an eastwards extension of the french-administered Tuamotu Archipelago. The islands are a dependent territory of the United Kingdom, being administered from New Zealand and represent the only remaining British territories in the Pacific.
The group — with a combined land area of 45 km² — consists of the two atolls of Oeno (1.6 km²) and Ducie (0.7 km²), located 121 km northwest and 470 km northeast of Pitcairn Island respectively; the raised coral island of Henderson, 170 km northeast of Pitcairn; and the high, rocky island of Pitcairn (4.5 km²). Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited member of the group.
Like all the islands in this region, the Pitcairn Islands owe their formation to volcanic activity
taking place beneath the ocean bed. All the islands have been formed by hotspot activity — with the
older formations of Oeno, Ducie and Henderson sharing a common hotspot origin. Pitcairn Island — the
youngest of the islands — was formed by the still active Pitcairn Hotspot. The activity that gave rise
to Pitcairn Island is also thought to be partly responsible for the raising of Henderson Island. The Pitcairn
hotspot is currently building a number of new volcanoes: Bounty Seamount and the Adams Seamount (90 km
southwest of Pitcairn), the latter rising to within 60 m of the sea surface from a depth of over 3,500 m.
Henderson, the largest of the islands with an area of 37 km², is located 200 km northeast of Pitcairn. It is unique among the raised coral islands of the Pacific in that its original ecosystems are largely intact — the island having last been inhabited during the 1600's. Even though it is small in size the island is home to a large number of endemic species: including 4 bird species, 50 arthropods, 9 land snails and 9 plant species. Its unique and undisturbed biota are protected as a World Heritage Site.
