NO. 2 FRASER : SCIENTIFIC WORK, VELERO III, EASTERN PACIFIC 199 



Peru 



Plates 93-104; Charts 91-97 



From Payana Point outward the south-southeastern shore forms the 

 coast line of Peru. Fifteen or 16 miles from Payana Point the appearance 

 of the coastal landscape changes very materially. The rich, green vegeta- 

 tion of the shores of the inner gulf and the north shore almost ceases. 

 What there is, is low and scattered. It is 66 miles from Malpelo Point to 

 Cape Blanco. There is one shore station 24 miles southwest of Malpelo 

 Point and 9 miles from Zorritos Light. 



South of Cape Blanco, 25 miles, is Parinas Point, the most westerly 

 point of South America. The intervening coast is made up of two small 

 bights, with Lobos Point between. Here and far south along the coast 

 from here are numerous small bays that serve as anchorages for the many 

 oil towns and villages on or near the coast. 



From Parinas Point the coast stretches southwestward to Port Paita 

 and westward again a short distance to Paita Point, 27 miles from Pari- 

 nas Point. Paita Point is the northwest extremity of a 10-mile peninsula 

 with Foca Point at the southwest extremity. Most of these points along 

 this part of the coast form cliffs, often sandy, or bluffs higher than the 

 coast and extending inland. 



From Foca Point the trend of the coast for 30 miles is southeast to 

 the entrance of a semicircular bay, Sechura Bay, 12 miles across the en- 

 trance to Pizura Point; or the whole indentation from Foca Point to 

 Pizura Point may be called Sechura Bay. There are two dredging stations 

 in the bay, both in 10 fathoms or less in sand and broken shell, the one 18 

 miles southeast of Foca Point and the other 10 miles northeast of Pizura 

 Point. 



Ten miles south of Pizura Point, where the oil fields are left behind, 

 is Aguja Point, from which the coast line forms a regular convexity 

 facing south for about 15 miles and then forms a regular, low-lying coast 

 extending to the southeastward to Eten Head. Thirty-three miles south- 

 east of Aguja Point and 9 miles offshore is Lobos de Tierra Island, 5% 

 miles long from north to south and % to 2 miles wide, with numerous 

 islets and shoals offshore. The greatest height is 325 feet. 



South and somewhat east of this, 28 miles, and 50 miles directly west 

 of Eten Head are the Lobos de Afuera. There are two islands close to- 

 gether and several islets. They are barren, covered with guano, the most 

 northerly of the "Bird Islands of Peru." Much of the shore is inacces- 

 sible, but there is anchorage in a bay to the northwest and in one to the 



