Chincha Islands, a group of three small islets off the coast of Peru, celebrated for their deposits of guano, from which the Peruvian government derives a revenue larger than from all other sources combined. They lie about 12 m. from the port of Pisco, in the department of Lima, in lat. 13° 44' S., lon. 76° 13' W. They are of granitic formation, the rock being of a bright red color, composed of red feldspar, white quartz, and a little mica, and are evidently the result of volcanic upheavals. The shores are bold and precipitous, rising usually 25 or 30 ft. above the sea, but in some places much higher, and increasing in height toward the centre. The cliffs are perforated with caves and arches, the homes of multitudes of penguins and other aquatic fowl; and the guano is honeycombed with the nests of small birds, which frequent the islands in immense flocks. The surface, which is destitute of vegetation, is covered with guano more than 100 ft. in depth. The excavating and shipping of this deposit employs 200 or 300 laborers, mostly convicts and Chinese coolies, who have formed a temporary settlement on the principal island. They live in huts of bulrush matting, stretched on bamboo supports, which furnish a sufficient shelter in this dry climate.

All means of subsistence, even drinking water, have to be brought from the mainland. More than 100 vessels are usually lying here, loading or waiting for cargoes. Chincha, the northern island, and chief of the group, is about four fifths of a mile in length and one third in breadth. It has been estimated to contain 17,000,000 tons of guano, and the others about 25,000,000; but these figures are probably exaggerated. About one half of the deposit of this island has already been excavated. (See Guano.)

Chincha Islands.

Guano Workings in the North Island.