Pebble Island is one of the Falkland Islands, situated north of West Falkland. It is possibly named after the peculiarly spherical pebbles found at its western tip. Description The island, the fifth largest in the Falklands archipelago, stretches for and about at its widest point, with a total area of . Its three high points are First Mountain , Middle Mountain and Marble Mountain , all of which lie in the western part of the island. The eastern part of the island has lakes and wetlands and is of high conservation value. The two halves are joined by an isthmus on which lies Pebble Island Settlement where the inhabitants live. The island has been a sheep farm since 1846; 6,000 Corriedale sheep are farmed, along with 125 head of beef and dairy cattle. Settlement Pebble Island Settlement (Spanish/Argentine name: Puerto Calderón)() is the headquarters of the Pebble Island farm, and is located on the island's isthmus. There is a shop (open three days a week), a one classroom school, an airstrip, a hotel and a golf course. History The settlement's Spanish name "Puerto Calderón" (meaning "port of the cauldron [or vat]") reflects the area's early history in sealing, and hunting penguins for oil. The farm was established in 1846 by John Markham Dean (elsewhere, John Henry Dean), an Englishman who bought Pebble and three neighbouring islands for £400. Dean's family concern passed on to Dean Brothers Ltd, but it is currently managed locally by Raymond Evans, the great nephew of Johnny Evans who introduced sheep to the island and slaughtered the first feral cattle. During the Falklands War, the island was occupied by Argentine forces which created the Estación Aeronaval Calderón (naval air station Calderon), protected by elements of 2nd Naval Infantry Battalion, which was assaulted successfully by the British Special Air Service in the "Raid on Pebble Island". Thirty to one-hundred and fifty Argentine soldiers were based here to protect the airfield. HMS Coventry was sunk off the coast of Pebble Island. According to the inquiry into its loss, the ship sank north of Pebble Island in May 1982. The co-ordinates of the sinking are 51 03.6S, 59 42.2W and this is about from the nearest point on Pebble Island. There are memorials on the island to the British destroyer HMS Coventry and to an Argentinian Lear Jet, both destroyed during the conflict. More recently, Pebble Island Settlement became