List of Guano Island claims

The United States claimed a number of islands as insular areas under the Guano Islands Act of 1856. Only the eight administered as the US Minor Islands and one each annexed by American Samoa and Hawaii remain as possessions of the United States. Any other unresolved claims if they exist are dormant, and have not been contested by the United States in many years with the exception of Navassa.

Table

Island	Region	Alternate name	Coordinates	Current Status	Resolution of U.S. claim
Alto Velo Island	Caribbean	Isla Alto Velo		Dominican Republic	Dormant (see Alto Velo Claim)
Atafu	Oceania	Duke of York Group		Tokelau	Treaty of Tokehega
Bajo Nuevo Bank	Caribbean	Petrel Islands		Disputed	Remains in place as an unincorporated territory. Also claimed by Colombia, Jamaica, and Nicaragua.
Baker Island	Oceania	New Nantucket		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Birnie Island	Oceania			Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Butaritari	Oceania	Makin Atoll, Touching Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Caroline Island	Oceania	Millennium Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Carondelet Reef	Oceania			Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Clipperton Island	Oceania	Passion Island		France	Arbitrated by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy
Ducie Island	Oceania			British Territory	Dormant. Administered by Pitcairn Islands.
Enderbury Island	Oceania	Guano Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Fakaofo	Oceania	Bowditch Island		Tokelau	Treaty of Tokehega
Flint Island	Oceania			Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Fox Island	Atlantic Ocean			Canada	Dormant
French Frigate Shoals	Oceania	Kānemiloha'i		Hawaii	Assumed sole competing claim thru annexation of Hawaii (1898); included in State of Hawaii (1959).
Funafuti	Oceania			Tuvalu	Tuvalu-US Treaty of 1983
Howland Island	Oceania	Worth Island		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Iles du Connétable	Atlantic Ocean	Constable Islands		France	Rescinded. Administered by French Guiana.
Jarvis Island	Oceania	Bunker Island		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Johnston Atoll	Oceania			US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Kanton Island	Oceania	Canton Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Kingman Reef	Oceania	Danger Rock		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Kiritimati	Oceania	Christmas Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Makin (islands)	Oceania	Little Makin		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Malden Island	Oceania	Independence Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Manihiki	Oceania	Island of Pearls		Cook Islands	Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty
Manra Island	Oceania	Sydney Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
McKean Island	Oceania	Wigram Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Midway Atoll	Oceania	Middlebrook Islands		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory
Minami Torishima	Oceania	Marcus Island		Japan	Returned to Japan in 1968 after it had been given to US by Treaty of San Francisco
Navassa Island	Caribbean	Navaza		US Minor Islands	Unincorporated territory. Also claimed by Haiti.
Nikumaroro	Oceania	Gardner Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Niulakita	Oceania	Sophia Island		Tuvalu	Tuvalu-US Treaty of 1983
Nukufetau	Oceania			Tuvalu	Tuvalu-US Treaty of 1983
Nukulaelae	Oceania			Tuvalu	Tuvalu-US Treaty of 1983
Nukunonu	Oceania	Bowditch Island		Tokelau	Treaty of Tokehega
Orona	Oceania	Hull Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Palmyra Atoll	Oceania			US Minor Islands	Incorporated territory. U.S. assumed sole competing claim thru annexation of Hawaii (1898), but not included in State of Hawaii (1959).
Penrhyn Island	Oceania	Tongareva		Cook Islands	Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty
Pukapuka	Oceania	San Bernardo Island		Cook Islands	Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty
Quita Sueño Bank	Caribbean	Quitasueño		Colombia	Vasquez-Saccio Treaty of 1981
Rakahanga	Oceania	Grand Duke Alexander Island		Cook Islands	Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty
Rawaki Island	Oceania	Phoenix Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Roncador Bank	Caribbean			Colombia	Vasquez-Saccio Treaty of 1981
Rosalind Bank	Caribbean	Rosa Linda Bank		Colombia	Colombia-US Treaty of 1981
Scorpion Reef	Gulf of Mexico	Arrecife Alacranes (Isla Pérez, Isla Chica, Isla Pajoras)		Mexico	Abandoned claim in 1894
Serrana Bank	Caribbean			Colombia	Vasquez-Saccio Treaty of 1981
Serranilla Bank	Caribbean			Disputed	May remain in place; Vasquez-Saccio Treaty of 1981 silent on the matter. Colombia and Jamaica agreed to a condominium; Nicaragua also lays claim.
Starbuck Island	Oceania	Volunteer Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Swains Island	Oceania			American Samoa	Treaty of Tokehega
Swan Islands	Caribbean	Islas Santanilla		Honduras	Honduras-US Treaty of 1972
Tabuaeran	Oceania	Fanning Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Teraina	Oceania	Washington Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Triángulo Oeste	Gulf of Mexico	West Triangle		Mexico	Abandoned claim in 1895
Vostok Island	Oceania	Staver Island		Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa
Winslow Reef	Oceania			Kiribati	Treaty of Tarawa

Images

• 

  Guano tramway on Jarvis Island

• 

  Hermit crabs on Baker Island

• 

  Navassa Island Lighthouse

See also

• Guano
• Insular area
• Territories of the United States
• Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument