Capital: Adamstown
Language: English (official)
Population: Abt. 50
Area: 47 Sq km
The Pitcairn Islands are a group of five islands in the South –Pacific Ocean situated about 3500 miles from the coast of Chile in South .America, and 3,300 miles from the coast of New Zealand. The island group is made up of the inhabited island of Pitcairn and the volcanic atolls of Sandy, Oeno, Henderson, and Ducie, all of which are uninhabited. Henderson Island due to its rich source of endemic plant life, an unknown species of endemic gecko, and for being the breeding ground of the Green Turtle, is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Pitcairn was the first Pacific island to become a British colony in 1828. Pitcairn is a British Overseas Territory and Britain’s most isolated dependency. Their sovereign is Queen Elisabeth II and the head of their democratic government is the local Mayor of the island.
Natural resources on the island consist of manganese, iron, copper, gold, silver and zinc has been found offshore.
Locals eke out a living from fishing, subsistence farming of fruit and vegetables, bee keeping and honey production. Local handicrafts and stamps are sold to tourists and passing ships to implement their income. There is a small tourist industry on the island of Pitcairn with three types of accommodation, home-stay with a resident local, private 3 bedroom chalets and the island's hostel. Tourist activities on the island consist of quad biking, fishing, snorkeling/scuba diving, bird watching and hiking.