Monito Island (
English: ''Little Mona'', es, Islote Monito) is an uninhabited
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
about northwest of the much larger
Mona Island
Mona ( es, Isla de Mona) is the third-largest island of the Puerto Rican archipelago, after the main island of Puerto Rico and Vieques. It is the largest of three islands in the Mona Passage, a strait between the Dominican Republic and Puerto R ...
. ''Monito'' is the
masculine diminutive form of ''Mona'' in Spanish, which also translates to ''little monkey'' in Spanish. It is one of three islands in the
Mona Passage
The Mona Passage ( es, Canal de la Mona) is a strait that separates the islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. The Mona Passage connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea and is an important shipping route between the Atlantic and the Panama ...
, and part of the
Isla de Mona e Islote Monito ''
barrio'', a subdivision of the municipality of
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
Mayagüez (, ) is a city and the eighth-largest municipality in Puerto Rico. It was founded as Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria de Mayagüez, and is also known as ''La Sultana del Oeste'' (The Sultaness of the West), ''Ciudad de las Aguas Pura ...
.
It is from the Puerto Rican mainland, and from the island of
Hispaniola (the coast of the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...
).
Description
The island is uninhabited. The high altitude of the island's shoreline makes it inaccessible by sea. ''Monito'' has an area of or , its highest point is , and is barren. The US coast guard has rescued migrants off Monito Island. The
Monito gecko is found only on Monito Island.
Gallery
Maps in the Puerto Rico 2010 Census of Population and Housing Page 136.jpg, US 2010 Census map of the two islands off Mayagüez
Banded Coral Shrimp, Monito Island, Puerto Rico.jpg, Banded Coral Shrimp
Green Moray Eel, Monito Island, Puerto Rico.jpg, Green Moray Eel
Monito diver in cave.jpg, Diver in cave
Diver and anemone, Monito Island, Puerto Rico.jpg, Diver and anemone
Diver and old anchor, Monito Island, Puerto Rico.jpg, Diver and old anchor
See also
*
Timeline of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
References
External links
*
Monito Island summary from the ''University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez'' Department of Biology Herbarium
{{Authority control
Uninhabited islands of Puerto Rico
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
National Natural Landmarks in Puerto Rico