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The Farallon Islands are a group of Island s and rocks found in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of mainland San Francisco , California . They lie 27 miles (43 km) outside the Golden Gate , 20 miles (32 km) south of Point Reyes . GEOGRAPHY Overview The islands string north westwards for 5 miles (8 km). Their total area is 211 acres (0.854 km&2). The islands were initially exploited for bird eggs and Fur Seal skins, then used as a Lighthouse station and a radio station. They have been protected in the Farallon National Wildlife and Wilderness Refuge, established in 1969, and contain the largest Seabird colony in the U.S. outside of Alaska and Hawaii . The islands are part of the City and County of San Francisco. Subgroups and individual islands
HISTORY area, showing relative position of the Farallones]] The islands were long known to the American Indians who lived in the Bay Area prior to the arrival of Europeans, but they are not thought to have traveled to them. The first European to record the islands was the ') by Sebastián Vizcaíno , who first charted them in 1603 . In the years following their discovery, the islands were exploited by seal hunters, first from New England and later from Russia . The Russians maintained a sealing station in the Farallons from 1819 to 1838 , decimating the islands' population of fur seals (it is not known whether the Northern Fur Seal or the Guadalupe Fur Seal were the islands' native fur seal, although the Northern Fur Seal is the species that has recolonized the islands after they became protected). After Alta California was ceded by Mexico to the U.S. in 1848 the islands' environment became linked to the growth of the city of San Francisco. Beginning in 1853 , a Lighthouse was constructed on SEFI. As the city grew, the seabird colonies came under severe threat as eggs were collected in the millions for the markets of San Francisco. The trade, which in its heyday could yield 500,000 eggs a month, was the source of conflict between the egg collecting companies and the lighthouse keepers. This conflict turned violent in a confrontation between rival companies in 1863 . The clash between two rival companies, known as the Egg War , left two men dead and marked the end of private companies on the islands, although the lighthouse keepers continued egging. This activity, combined with the threat of oil spills from shipping in San Francisco's shipping lanes, prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to sign Executive Order No. 1043 in 1909 , creating the Farallon Reservation, protecting the northern islands of the chain. This was expanded to all the islands in 1969 when it became a National Wildlife Refuge . The islands are the site of many Shipwreck s, including the Liberty Ship '' SS Henry Bergh '', a converted troop carrier that hit West End in 1944 , pieces of which can still be seen from the island today (all hands were saved). The United States Coast Guard maintained a manned lighthouse until 1972 , when it was automated. The islands are currently managed by the United States Fish And Wildlife Service , in conjunction with the Marin -based Point Reyes Bird Observatory (PRBO). The islands are currently the subject of long term Ecological research. Today, the Farallones are closed to the public, although birders and wildlife enthusiasts can approach them on Whale Watching boats. NUCLEAR WASTE From 1945 to 1970 the sea around the Farallones was used as a nuclear dumping ground for radioactive waste. The USS Independence used as a target in Bikini Atoll nuclear tests is said to have been sunk at this site. In 1990 marine biologists produced graphic evidence of fish swimming among corroded and collapsed barrels, one source reported that barrels were shot at and punctured to make them sink. Still today radioactivity at the site is not adequately monitored. WILDLIFE The Farallon Islands are an important reserve protecting a huge Seabird Colony . The islands' position in the highly productive California Current and Eastern Pacific Upwelling region, as well as the absence of other large islands that would provide suitable nesting grounds, result in a seabird population of over 250,000. Twelve species of seabird and shorebird nest on the islands; Western Gull , Brandt's Cormorant , Pelagic Cormorant , Double-crested Cormorant , Pigeon Guillemot , Common Murre , Cassin's Auklet , Tufted Puffin , Black Oystercatcher , Rhinoceros Auklet , Ashy Storm-petrel and Leach's Storm-petrel . Since the islands were protected, Common Murres, which once numbered nearly 500,000 pairs, have recovered from the egg collecting, oil spills and other disturbances which previously had greatly reduced their numbers, and have climbed from 6,000 birds to 160,000. Additionally, since protection, the locally extinct Rhinoceros Auklet has begun to breed on the islands again. The island has the world's largest colonies of Western Gulls and Ashy Storm-petrels, the latter species being considered Endangered and a conservation priority. The island also is the wintering ground of several species of Migrants , and regularly attracts Vagrant birds (about 400 species of bird have been recorded on or around the island). Five species of Pinniped come to shore on the islands, and in some cases breed. These are the Northern Elephant Seal , Harbor Seal , Steller's Sea Lion , California Sea Lion and the Northern Fur Seal (the last of which, like the Rhinoceros Auklet, began to return to the island again after protection). The elephant seal population attracts a well-known population of Great White Shark s to the islands as well. The islands are in the Gulf Of The Farallones National Marine Sanctuary , which protects the feeding grounds of the wildlife of the refuge. REFERENCES
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