Entrance to El Yunque National Forest sign, Puerto Rico

The protected areas of Puerto Rico include an array of natural areas in the archipelago of

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, an unincorporated territory of the United States, managed by a number of agencies and entities belonging to both

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

and

commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

government bodies. Although Puerto Rico has no natural units in the

National Park System The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

, the biodiversity of the island is recognized and protected through a national forest, a

national wildlife refuge National Wildlife Refuge System is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to c ...

, a national wilderness, and numerous

state parks State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

(often called ''national parks'' in Puerto Rico), nature reserves,

state forests A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign state, sovereign or federated state, or territory (country subdivision), territory. Background The precise application of the terms va ...

, wildlife preserves and other designations on state, municipal and public-private administration levels.

Federal level

National Estuarine Research Reserves

* Jobos Bay

National Forests

* El Yunque Mosquito bay, Bioluminescent bay, Vieques - panoramio (2)

National Natural Landmarks

* Baño de Oro Natural Area * Cabo Rojo * Mona and Monito Islands *

Puerto Mosquito The Puerto Mosquito Bioluminescent Bay (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Bahía bioluminiscente de Puerto Mosquito'') or Mosquito Bio Bay, is a bay in the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, Vieques famous for its bioluminescence produced by the dinoflag ...

Río Abajo State Forest Rio Abajo State Forest is a forest preserve in Puerto Rico owned by the Department of Natural Resources and one of the 20 state forests in the island. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1980 and constitutes an area of 3,590 acres. ...

National Wild and Scenic Rivers

* Icacos *

La Mina ''La Mina'' is an album by Italian singer Mina, distributed in 1975 back to back with album ''Minacantalucio''. Track listing Credits *Mina – vocals *Pino Presti – arranger/conductor in "Ti accetto come sei", "Quasi come musica (''A Song f ...

* Mameyes

National Wilderness Preservation System

El Toro El Toro, Spanish for "the bull", may refer to: Geography * El Toro (Mallorca), a neighbourhood in the municipality of Calvià on the island of Mallorca * El Toro, Castellón, a town in Castellón, Spain * El Toro (Jujuy), a rural municipality and ...

National Wildlife Refuge

* Caribbean Islands National Wildlife Refuge spanning Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and

Navassa Island Navassa Island (; ht, Lanavaz; french: l'île de la Navasse, sometimes ) is a small uninhabited island in the Caribbean Sea. Located northeast of Jamaica, south of Cuba, and west of Jérémie on the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti, it is subject to ...

with the following units in Puerto Rico: ** Cabo Rojo ** Culebra ** Desecheo ** Laguna Cartagena **

Vieques Vieques (; ), officially Isla de Vieques, is an island and municipality of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques is part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ...

Commonwealth level

Conservation Easement Sites (''Servidumbres de conservación'')

* Centro Espíritu Santo * El Rabanal *

El Tambor EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

* Foreman Conservation Easement * Gulín Farm * Ledesma Moulier Farm * María Luisa Farm *

Montes Oscuros Montes Oscuros (Spanish for "dark mountains") is a small mountain range located between the Sierra de Cayey and the main Cordillera Central, on the municipalities of Coamo and Salinas in southern Puerto Rico. The mountain range and its environm ...

Palmas del Mar Tropical Forest 'Palmas del Mar Tropical Forest'', also known as the Palmas del Mar Pterocarpus Forest, is located in and near the beach resort community of Palmas del Mar in Humacao, Puerto Rico. The 144 acres of forest tracts belonging to the Palmas del Mar Tro ...

* Picaflor Conservation Easement * Siembra Tres Vidas

Conservation Zones

* Puerto Rico karst ** Northern karst ** Southern karst

Marine Reserves

* Desecheo Island Coastal Waters Marine Reserve * Isla Verde Reef Marine Reserve *

Tres Palmas Marine Reserve Tres may refer to: * Tres (instrument), a Cuban musical instrument * Tres, Trentino, municipality in Italy * "Tres" (song) by Juanes * "Tres", a song by Líbido from their album ''Hembra'' * TrES, the ''Trans-Atlantic Exoplanet Survey'' * Templi R ...

Nature Reserves (''Reservas Naturales'')

Mona ground Iguana Iguana de Mona en la playa (5839983809)

* Aguas Buenas Cave System * Belvedere Farm (part of

Boquerón State Forest Boquerón State Forest (Spanish: ''Bosque Estatal de Boquerón'') is one of the 20 forestry units that make up the public forest system of Puerto Rico. Despite its name, the Boquerón State Forest is not only located in Boquerón, Cabo Rojo but ...

) *

Caja de Muertos Caja de Muertos (; also in English: ''Coffin Island'') is an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, in the municipality of Ponce. The island and its surrounding waters are protected by the Caja de Muertos Nature Reserve, beca ...

* Caño La Boquilla *

Caño Martín Peña Nature Reserve Caño Martín Peña Nature Reserve (Spanish: ''Reserva Natural Caño Martín Peña'') is a nature reserve in San Juan, Puerto Rico located along the 3.75 mile long Martín Peña Channel. The nature reserve protects wetlands and an urban mangrove ...

Caño Tiburones Caño Tiburones is a wetland and nature reserve located in the northern coast of Puerto Rico in the municipalities of Arecibo and Barceloneta. This is one of the largest wetlands in Puerto Rico, covering almost 7,000 acres. A large portion of t ...

* Cayo Ratones (part of Boquerón State Forest) * Cialitos River Nature Reserve *

Cibuco Swamp Cibuco Swamp (Spanish: ''Pantano de Cibuco'') is a swamp located in northern Puerto Rico in the municipality of Vega Baja. The swamp is found at the mouth of the Cibuco River, in the '' barrios'' Cabo Caribe, Cibuco and Puerto Nuevo. The swamp i ...

Condado Lagoon Condado Lagoon ( es, Laguna del Condado) is located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is an effluent body of water that flows freely between the Condado and Miramar neighborhoods of Santurce, a barrio of San Juan. Background Its tributary stream o ...

* Cueva del Indio * Espíritu Santo River Nature Reserve *

Guayama Reef Guayama (, ), officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama ( es, Municipio Autónomo de Guayama) is a city and municipality on the Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 36,614. It is the ce ...

* Hacienda La Esperanza Nature Reserve *

Humacao Nature Reserve Humacao Nature Reserve (Spanish: ''Reserva Natural de Humacao''), or the Punta Santiago Nature Reserve, is a nature reserve located in the southeastern coast of Puerto Rico, between the municipalities of Humacao ( Punta Santiago) and Naguabo ( R ...

* Joyuda Lagoon (part of Boquerón State Forest) * La Cordillera Reef *

La Parguera LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

(part of Boquerón State Forest) * Las Cabachuelas Caves *

Las Cabezas de San Juan Las Cabezas de San Juan ( es, Saint John's Hillocks) is a village and municipality located in the Bajo Guadalquivir ( es, Lower Guadalquivir) comarca, in Seville province, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2009 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may re ...

* Las Cucharillas Swamp * Las Piedras del Collado * Luis Peña Channel * Mata de Plátano Field Station *

Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve (Spanish: ''Reserva Natural Islas Mona y Monito'') consists of two islands, Mona and Monito, in the Mona Passage off western Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve encompasses ...

Northeast Ecological Corridor The Northeast Ecological Corridor Nature Reserve (NECNR) ( Spanish: ''Reserva Natural Corredor Ecológico del Noreste'') refers to an area designated as a protected Nature Reserve located on the northeast coast of Puerto Rico, between the municip ...

**Seven Seas Farm *

Planadas-Yeyesa Nature Reserve The Planadas-Yeyesa Nature Reserve (Spanish: ''Reserva natural Planadas-Yeyesa'') is a protected nature reserve located in the Sierra de Cayey, in the municipality of Salinas in central Puerto Rico. The reserve is located close to the famous Cerr ...

* Playa Grande El Paraíso * Pterocarpus Forest of Humacao * Punta Ballenas Nature Reserve (part of

Guánica State Forest The Guánica State Forest ( es, Bosque Estatal de Guánica), popularly known as the Guánica Dry Forest (Spanish: ''Bosque seco de Guánica'') is a subtropical dry forest located in southwest Puerto Rico. The area was designated as a forest reser ...

) *

Punta Cucharas Reserva Natural Punta Cucharas (Punta Cucharas Nature Reserve) is a nature reserve in Barrio Canas, Ponce, Puerto Rico. It consists of both a land area component as well as an offshore marine area. The land component has an area of while the ...

''AN ACT To designate Punta Cucharas natural area of the Municipality of Ponce as a Natural Reserve Area of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, to be administered pursuant to the provisions of Act No. 150 of 4 August 1988, as amended, known as the "Puerto Rico Natural Patrimony Program Act."''
Legislature of Puerto Rico. Legislative Year 2008, Law No. 227. House Bill #3797. 9 August 2008. Accessed 8 June 2016
Archive.
/ref> *

Punta Petrona Nature Reserve Punta is an Afro-indigenous dance and cultural music originating in the Caribbean Island of Saint Vincent And The Grenadines by the Garifuna people before being exiled from the island. Which is also known as Yurumei. It has African and Arawak ...

* Punta Tuna Mangrove * Punta Vientos Wetland *

Punta Yeguas Punta Yeguas (Spanish for "mares' point") is a headland and nature reserve located in the Camino Nuevo barrio of Yabucoa, Puerto Rico. Geographically, the headland corresponds to the orographic kneeling of the Sierra Pandura, a mountain range wh ...

San Juan Ecological Corridor The San Juan Ecological Corridor (Spanish: ''Corredor Ecológico de San Juan'', shortened to ''CESJ'') is a project dedicated to the preservation of an ecological corridor in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico, designated under Law No. 20 ...

** Cupey Arboretum ** Doña Inés Mendoza Urban Forest **

Los Capuchinos Forest LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to: Science and technology * Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation * Level of service (transportation), Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers * Level of significance, a ...

** New Millennium State Forest **

Old Piedras River Aqueduct The Old Piedras River Aqueduct (Spanish: ''Antiguo acueducto del Río Piedras''), also known as the San Juan Waterworks (''Acueductos de San Juan''), is an aqueduct in the ''barrio'' (district) of El Cinco of San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is by the ...

** University of Puerto Rico Botanical Garden * Tortuguero Lagoon * Tourmaline Reef * Vieques Bioluminescent Bay (Puerto Mosquito)

Protected Natural Areas (''Áreas naturales protegidas'')

* Bairoa River Protected Natural Area * Cerro Felíz * Cerro La Tuna * Cerro Las Mesas * Cordillera Sabana Alta * Culebras Protected Natural Area * Dorado Pterocarpus Forest * El Conuco Protected Natural Area *

El Convento Cave EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

* Encantado River Protected Natural Area * Freddie Ramírez Protected Natural Area * Guaynabo River Protected Natural Area * Hacienda Buena Vista Protected Natural Area * Hacienda Lago Protected Natural Area * Hacienda Margarita Protected Natural Area * Hacienda Pellejas Protected Natural Area * Hermanas Sendra Protected Natural Area * Jacaboa River Protected Natural Area * Jájome * Jorge Sotomayor del Toro Protected Natural Area * La Pitahaya Protected Natural Area *

La Robleda Protected Natural Area LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

Las Bocas Canyon Las Bocas Canyon (Puerto Rican Spanish, Spanish: ''Cañón Las Bocas'') is a steep gorge formed by the Frío River (Puerto Rico), Frío River (''Río Frío'') and numerous other creeks, primarily the Hondo River (Comerío, Puerto Rico), Hondo River ...

* Los Frailes Farm Protected Natural Area * Los Llanos Protected Natural Area * Luz Martínez de Benítez Protected Natural Area * Maricao River Protected Natural Area * Marín Alto Protected Natural Area * Medio Mundo and Daguao Protected Natural Area * Ojo de Agua Protected Natural Area * Paraíso de las Lunas Protected Natural Area * Punta Cabullones Protected Natural Area * Punta Pozuelo Protected Natural Area * Punta Soldado Protected Natural Area * Quebrada Janer Protected Natural Area * San Cristóbal Canyon * San Juan Park Protected Natural Area * Sana Muerto River Protected Natural Area * Shapiro Protected Natural Area *

Sierra Pandura Sierra Pandura, also known as ''Cuchilla de Pandura'' (Pandura Ridge) and ''La Pica'', is a mountain range that runs from the Sierra de Cayey in the northwest to the Caribbean Sea in the southeast in southeastern Puerto Rico, between the municipa ...

* Toa Vaca River Protected Natural Area * Toro Negro River Protected Natural Area * Ulpiano Casal Protected Natural Area

Research Reserves (''Áreas de investigación'')

* Guayama Research Area * Manatí Research Area

State Forests (''Bosques Estatales'')

Guayacán Centenario, Guánica, Puerto Rico

* Aguirre * Boquerón * Cambalache * Carite *

Ceiba ''Ceiba'' is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to N Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to tall or more, with a straight, la ...

* Cerrillos * Guajataca * Guánica * Guilarte * Los Tres Picachos *

Maricao Maricao () is a town and the second-least populous municipality of Puerto Rico; it is located at the western edge of the Cordillera Central. It is a small town set around a small square in hilly terrain, north of San Germán, Sabana Grande and ...

* Monte Choca *

Nuevo Milenio ''Nuevo Milenio'' (English: ''New Millennium'') is Hector & Tito's second studio album. Track list Personnel *All lyrics were provided by Héctor & Tito. Music was provided by Goldy except for track 11. José M. Lugo provided the music for ...

* Piñones * del Pueblo ** La Olimpia *

Río Abajo Río Abajo is a corregimiento within Panama City, in Panamá District, Panamá Province, Panama with a population of 26,607 as of 2010. Its population as of 1990 was 33,155; its population as of 2000 was 28,714. It is a West Indian neighborhoo ...

* San Patricio *

Susúa Susúa is a barrio in the municipality of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico Sabana Grande () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located north of Lajas and Guánica; south of Maricao; east of San Germán; and west of Yauco. Sabana Grande ...

* Toro Negro *

Vega Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, an ...

State Parks (''Parques Nacionales de Puerto Rico'') and other protected areas

Las Casas de la Selva - Eye On the Rainforest

* Caguana Ceremonial Indigenous Heritage Park * Caguas Real Reserve (currently managed by the

USFWS The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

) * Camuy River Caves *

El Tallonal EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

* El Verde Farm * Finca Longo (managed by the DRNA forest service) * José Santiago Farm * Julio Enrique Monagas Park
Las Casas de la Selva
* Nolla Farm

Wildlife Refuges (''Refugios de Vida Silvestre'')

* Boquerón Iris Alameda Wildlife Refuge (part of

) * Cerrillos Lake Wildlife Refuge * El Buey Natural Wildlife Refuge * Lake Guajataca Wildlife Refuge * Lake La Plata Wildlife Refuge * Lake Luchetti Wildlife Refuge

Municipal level

* Caguas Regional Forest (

Caguas Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...

) * Chalets de Bairoa Natural Area (Caguas) * Cerro Borrás (Caguas) *

Río Hondo Community Forest Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

( Mayagüez)

References

External links

DRNA - Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (Spanish)

Para la Naturaleza - Puerto Rico Conservation Trust (Spanish)

USFS - United States Forest Service (English)
{{Protected areas of Puerto Rico *

Protected Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...