Santa Maria Natural Park ( pt, Parque Natural de Santa Maria) is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

on Santa Maria Island in the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

. The park was created by the ''Secretaria Regional do Ambiente e do Mar'' (''Regional Secretariate for the Environment and Oceans''), of the Autonomous Regional Government of the Azores to better manage the protected areas of Santa Maria Island. Several natural landscapes were preserved and their use conditioned in order to foster conservation and support endemic flora and fauna species, as well as provide communal forms of recreation and nature interpretation.

History

On the 7 November 2008, the Regional Government legislated the creation (under Regional Legislative Decree 47/2008/A) of the ''Parque Natural da Ilha de Santa Maria'' (''Santa Maria Island Natural Park'') in order to coordinate and administer the island's thirteen protected areas as one.

Geography

;Nature Reserves * MA01Nature Reserve of the Formigas Islets ( pt, Reserva Natural dos Ilhéus das Formigas) * MA02Nature Reserve of the Vila Islet ( pt, Reserva Natural do Ilhéu da Vila) ;Natural Monuments * MA03 Natural Monument of Pedreira do Campo, Figueiral and Prainha ( pt, Monumento Natural da Pedreira do Campo, do Figueiral e Prainha) ;Protected Areas for the Management of Habitats and Coast Species * MA04Protected Area of the Southwest Coast ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies da Costa Sudoeste) * MA05Protected Area of Ponta do Castelo ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies da Ponta do Castelo) * MA06Protected Area of Baía do Cura ( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies da Baía do Cura) * MA07Protected Area of

Pico Alto Pico Alto (English: ''High Peak'') is the highest mountain in the Brazilian state of Ceará, reaching . It is located in the city of Guaramiranga Guaramiranga is one of the smallest towns of the Northeastern state of Ceará in Brazil. It is l ...

( pt, Área Protegida para a Gestão de Habitats ou Espécies do Pico Alto) ;Protected Landscapes * MA08Protected Landscape of

Barreiro da Faneca The Protected Landscape of Barreiro da Faneca ( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida do Barreiro da Faneca) is a geological region and protected landscape of the Portuguese island of Santa Maria, Azores. The protected area is given its name by the Bar ...

( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida do Barreiro da Faneca) * MA09Protected Landscape of Baía de São Lourenço ( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida da Baía de São Lourenço) * MA10Protected Landscape of Baía da Maia ( pt, Área de Paisagem Protegida da Baía da Maia) ;Protected Areas for the Management of Resources * MA11Protected Resource Areas of Baía de São Lourenço ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos da Baía de São Lourenço) * MA12Protected Resource Areas of the North Coast ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos da Costa Norte) * MA13Protected Resource Areas of the Southern Coast ( pt, Área Protegida de Gestão de Recursos da Costa Sul) In addition, the ''Direcção Regional dos Recursos Florestais'' (''Regional Directorate for Forest Resources''), which is responsible for the administration of forest resources and parks on the island, is responsible for the maintenance and promotion of the following forest reserves, within the designated spaces: *

Recreational Forest Reserve of Fontinhas The Recreational Forest Reserve of Fontinhas ( pt, Reserva Florestal de Recreio de Fontinhas) is a recreational forest located centrally on the island of Santa Maria, in the civil parish of Santo Espírito, municipality of Vila do Porto in the ...

( pt, Reserva Florestal de Recreio das Fontinhas) * Recreational Forest Reserve of Valverde ( pt, Reserva Florestal de Recreio de Valverde) * Recreational Forest Reserve of Mata do Alto ( pt, Reserva Florestal de Recreio da Mata do Alto)

References

;Notes ;Sources * * * {{coord missing, Portugal Santa Maria Ramsar sites in Portugal Santa Maria Island