Pingüino de Humboldt National Reserve is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

located a short distance off the coast of mainland

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It consists of three islands:

Chañaral Chañaral is a small coastal city and commune in the Atacama Region, Chile and capital of the Chañaral Province. It is largely unknown by tourists, who generally head straight for towns such as San Pedro de Atacama. The town has no high rise ...

, ''Damas'' and ''Choros''. It is located about north of La Serena in the

Coquimbo Region The Coquimbo Region ( es, Región de Coquimbo, ) is one of Chile's 16 regions (first order administrative divisions). It is bordered by Atacama to the north, Valparaíso to the south, Argentina to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

of Chile and has a total area of . Coastal communities of '' Caleta Chañaral'', ''Chañaral de Aceituno'', '' Punta de Choros'' are nearby. The reserve is an important breeding site for the

Humboldt penguin The Humboldt penguin (''Spheniscus humboldti'') is a medium-sized penguin. It resides in South America, its range mainly contains most of coastal Peru. Its nearest relatives are the African penguin, the Magellanic penguin and the Galápagos pen ...

, for which it is named, and is a habitat for

sea lion Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

s and bottlenose dolphins, chungungos (

marine otter The marine otter (''Lontra felina'') is a rare and relatively unknown South American mammal of the weasel family ( Mustelidae). The scientific name means "otter cat", and in Spanish, the marine otter is also often referred to as : "marine c ...

s),

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...

, albatross and cormorant. Aside from dolphins, local cetacean diversity includes migratory rorquals such as

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when ...

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

, and

humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...

s, and sperm whales. The park is located in both Region III and Region IV of Chile. The reserve includes the Aceituno de

Chañaral Island Isla Chañaral (sometimes referred to as Isla Chanaral or Chanaral Island) is located 6 km off-shore from the northern Central Chilean coast, some 100 km north of the city of La Serena. Together with Isla Choros and Isla Damas, the islan ...

(third region) and Damas and Choros Islands (fourth region). It is part of the Sistema Nacional de Áreas Silvestres Protegidas del Estado de Chile ( National System of Protected Areas of the State of Chile), administered by the

Corporación Nacional Forestal The National Forest Corporation or CONAF (Corporación Nacional Forestal) is a Chilean private, non-profit organization, through which the Chilean state contributes to the development and sustainable management of the country's forest resources. C ...

(National Forest Service, Conaf). Lobera choros

Access routes

From

La Serena, Chile La Serena () is a city and commune in northern Chile, capital of the Coquimbo Region. Founded in 1544, it is the country's second oldest city after the national capital, Santiago. As of 2012, it had a communal population of roughly 200,000, an ...

advance on the road 75 km. to the turnoff leading to the village of Los Choros. From here, walk 45 km. by dirt road, which in its last 5 km. going through a difficult transition dune.

Registration

National Forestry Corporation The National Forest Corporation or CONAF (Corporación Nacional Forestal) is a Chilean private, non-profit organization, through which the Chilean state contributes to the development and sustainable management of the country's forest resources. C ...

(CONAF) registration is required at Punta de Choros. The next step is to hire one of the boats going out to the reserve's main attractions, Isla Damas, Isla Choros and Isla Chañaral.

Choros Island

In 2013, the Chilean National Forestry Corporation (

CONAF The National Forest Corporation or CONAF (Corporación Nacional Forestal) is a Chilean private, non-profit organization, through which the Chilean state contributes to the development and sustainable management of the country's forest resources. C ...

), in collaboration with

Island Conservation Island Conservation is a non-profit organization with the mission to prevent extinctions by removing invasive species from islands. Island Conservation has therefore focused its efforts on islands with species categorized as Critically Endangere ...

, removed invasive rabbits from Choros Island benefiting the

, Peruvian diving petrel, and the local eco-tourism industry. Since 2014, the return of fields of

Alstroemeria ''Alstroemeria'' (), commonly called the Peruvian lily or lily of the Incas, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Alstroemeriaceae. They are all native to South America, although some have become naturalized in the United States, Mex ...

philippii and the increase in Peruvian diving petrels seeking out burrows signaled a return to ecological health. In 2018, the partners declared the removal of invasive rabbits from the Humboldt Penguin National Reserve a success.

Damas Island

Damas Island measures 60.3 hectares and much of its charm lies in its Caribbean style beaches. However, the water is fairly cold due to the Humboldt current. Damas Island is the only place that has camping and picnicking facilities and to get there you have to contract the services of fishermen in the vicinity of Punta de Choros cove.

Climate

The climate is considered semiarid because it is arid by the north and mild by the south. The shore temperatures are homogeneous, meanwhile in the interior the temperature oscillates between day and night time. Rain during winter season.

Admission

Entrance is $1600 Chilean pesos for adults, and $600 Chilean pesos for kids.

References

External links

Pingüino de Humboldt National Reserve page at Conaf

360° panoramas of Damas and Choros islands
(Requires QuickTimePlayer)

Scientific Study on the Humboldt Penguins, Scientific Study on the Humboldt Penguins

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pinguino de Humboldt National Reserve National reserves of Chile Protected areas of Atacama Region Protected areas of Coquimbo Region Coasts of Atacama Region Coasts of Coquimbo Region Island restoration