The Los Roques Archipelago is a federal dependency of Venezuela consisting of approximately 350 islands, cays, and islets in a total area of 40.61 square kilometers. The archipelago is located 128 kilometers (80 mi) directly north of the port of La Guaira, in the Caribbean Sea.
Image: Gran Roque from plane
Image: Cayo de Agua in Los Roques
Image: Island Crasqui
Image: Guanaguanre (Larus atricilla) de los Roques Venezuela 000
Federal Dependencies of Venezuela
The Federal Dependencies of Venezuela encompass most of Venezuela's offshore islands in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Venezuela, excluding those islands that form the State of Nueva Esparta and some Caribbean coastal islands that are integrated with nearby states. These islands, with a total area of 342 square kilometres, are sparsely populated – according to the preliminary results of the 2011 Census only 2,155 people live there permanently, with another hundred from Margarita Island who live there seasonally to engage in fishing. Local government is officially under the authority of Central government in Caracas, although de facto power is often held by the heads of the sparse and somewhat isolated communities that decorate the territories.
The Dutch settled in La Tortuga in 1605 until they were again evicted by the Spanish in 1631.
The Simón Bolívar Scientific-Military Base on the Aves Island established in 1978
Cayo de Agua, Los Roques Archipelago
Reefs in the Dos Mosquises Islands