Pacific/Remote Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex Howland and Baker Islands lie about 40 miles apart just north of the equator in the central Pacific Ocean and about 1,600 miles southwest of Honolulu. Howland consists of a 455-acre island surrounded by 32,074 acres of submerged land. Baker consists of a 405-acre island surrounded by 30,504 acres of submerged land. Jarvis Island lies a few miles south of the equator about 1,300 miles south of Honolulu and 1,000 miles east of Baker and Howland. Jarvis consists of a 1,086-acre island surrounded by 35,397 acres of submerged land. These flat coral islands are surrounded by reef and are uninhabited and sparsely vegetated. These refuges are managed by the Pacific/Remote Islands NWR Complex in Honolulu. Howland, Baker and Jarvis Islands were exploited for commercial guano harvesting during the 18th century. "Guano" is essentially bird droppings, which was used as fertilizer. All three islands were also occupied by American forces during World War II. Feral cats were at one time found on all three of these equatorial refuges where they preyed heavily on nesting seabirds. Cats were successfully eradicated from Baker in 1964 and Jarvis in 1983.   Remnants of brief human inhabitation earlier this century on Howland Island. Howland, Baker, and Jarvis National Wildlife Refuges Planning Update U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Pacific/Remote Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex 300 Ala Moana Boulevard Room 5-231, Box 50167 Honolulu, Hawai`i 96850 (808) 792-9550 (808) 792-9586 fax Entry to the refuge is by Special Use Permit only. Johnston Atoll Kingman Reef Palmyra Atoll Rose Atoll Hawaiian Islands NWR Main Hawaiian Islands NWRs Top of Page