Puerto Rico

A Commonwealth of the United States of America

• Area: 3,515 sq mi (9,104 sq km)/ World Rank: 165
• Location: Northern and Western Hemispheres, between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic.
• Coordinates: 18°15′N, 66°30′W
• Borders: None
• Coastline: 311 mi (501 km)
• Territorial Seas: 12 NM
• Highest Point: Cerro de Punta, 4,390 ft (1,338 m)
• Lowest Point: Sea level
• Longest Distances: 111 mi (179 km) E-W; 36 mi (58 km) N-S
• Longest River: Río La Plata, 46 mi (74 km)
• Natural Hazards: Hurricanes, drought
• Population: 3,937,316 (July 2001 est.) /World Rank: 119
• Capital City: San Juan, on the northern coast
• Largest City: San Juan, 421,958 (2000)

OVERVIEW

Puerto Rico is located at the eastern end of the Greater Antilles, between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is a commonwealth of the United States of America, 1,000 mi (1,609 km) southeast of the U.S. mainland, between the island of Hispaniola to the west and the Virgin Islands to the east. In addition to its main island, Puerto Rico also includes three smaller ones, Vieques and Culebra to the east and Mona to the west.

Puerto Rico's main island, rectangular in shape, has a hilly and mountainous interior ringed by a narrow coastal plain. The major mountain system is the Cordillera Central, which bisects the western and central parts of the island. Other than the coastal plain, the major lowland area is the Turabo Valley, a largely agricultural area that lies between three mountain chains in the eastern part of the island.

Located near the division between the Caribbean and North American Tectonic Plates, Puerto Rico is a seismically active region that has sporadic earthquakes.

MOUNTAINS AND HILLS

Mountains

Steep mountain slopes cover nearly one-fourth of the island. The highest and longest mountain range is the Cordillera Central, which extends 60 mi (97 km) across the center of the island and reaches elevations of over 3,000 ft (914 m). Puerto Rico's highest peak, Cerro de Punta, is part of this system, which rises rapidly from the southern coast and more gradually in the north. The other major mountain system is the Sierra de Luquillo in the east, where the country's most famous peak, El Yunque (3,483 ft / 1,062 m) is located. A third mountain range—the Sierra da Cayey—is in the southeast.

Hills and Badlands

Puerto Rico's steep mountains descend to foothills before giving way to the coastal plains. While the original forests have been preserved on many of the mountains, which are too steep for cultivation, farming takes place on the foothills.

In the northwest, an area of low hills with elevations between 200 and 300 ft (60 and 90 m) marks the karst region, an area where rain has carved limestone rocks into hills, caves, and tunnels.

INLAND WATERWAYS

The major rivers flow northward over the mountains to the coast. These include the Río La Plata (the longest), the Río Grande de Loiza (the widest), the Río de Bayamon, and the Río Grande de Arecibo. Many of these rivers feature dams and small reservoirs. The rivers in the south are fewer, shorter, and smaller in volume.

THE COAST, ISLANDS, AND THE OCEAN

Oceans and Seas

Like the other islands of the Greater Antilles, Puerto Rico is bordered on the north by the rough, cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean and on the south by the warmer, calmer Caribbean Sea. It is separated from the island of Hispaniola to the west by the Mona Passage, and from the Virgin Islands to the east by the Vieques Sound and the Virgin Passage.

The waters just off the coast are shallow, but the bottom drops to 6,000 ft (1,829 m) 2 mi (3 km) to the north. Some 40 mi (64 km) farther north lies the Puerto Rico Trench. At the western end of the trench is the Milwaukee Depth, where the ocean floor plunges to a depth of more than 27,493 feet (8,380 meters)—among the greatest ocean depths in the world, and the greatest known depth in the Atlantic.

Major Islands

Vieques, Puerto Rico's largest island aside from the main island, has an area of about 52 sq mi (135 sq km), much of it occupied by a U.S. naval training facility. Its mountains retain some of their original rainforest. Culebra, which also lies to the east of the main island, is an archipelago consisting of a largely flat main island surrounded by 20 islets. Mona Island, to the west, has an area of 20 sq mi (52 sq km).

The Coast and Beaches

Puerto Rico's coastline is moderately indented at most. San Juan Bay is in the northeast, the site of the commonwealth's capital. Mayagüez Bay marks the western end of the island; Punta Águila and Punta Brea are in the southwest. The shore has both rocky and sandy beaches.

CLIMATE AND VEGETATION

Temperature

Trade winds from the northeast moderate Puerto Rico's tropical climate. Temperatures year round generally stay in between 70°F and °80°F (21°C and 27°C), although more extreme temperatures are possible in lower inland areas and on the southern coast. The mean temperature in San Juan is 75°F (24°C) in January and 81°F (27°C) in July. Hurricanes are a hazard between August and October; in the history of Puerto Rico, dozens of these storms have caused property damage and loss of life.

Rainfall

Average annual rainfall varies from 36 in (91 cm) in the south to 60 in (152 cm) at San Juan to as much as 180 in (457 cm) in the mountains. Rainfall is distributed fairly evenly throughout the year.

Grasslands

Coastal plains ring the main island. They have a maximum width of 15 mi (24 km), and the strip of plain on the north is only 5 mi (8 km) wide. This industrialized and urbanized area is the island's major population and commercial center. Agricultural land is still found in the plains of the south and west and the Turabo Valley in the east.

Forests and Jungles

Although little of Puerto Rico's original forest remains, the northern part of the country is rich in planted tree species, and rainforest covers much of the mountainous area. There are a number of wildlife reserves. The most extensive is the El Yunque National Forest in the Sierra de Luquillo, which has more than 200 tree species and about the same number of fern species. One of Puerto Rico's most distinctive sights is the royal poinciana tree, also called the flamboyant, which has brilliant red flowers. The drier south is home to scrub vegetation, cactus, and other thorny plants.

HUMAN POPULATION

Most of Puerto Rico's population lives in the northern coastal plain. Puerto Ricans are citizens of the United States of America, and large numbers immigrated to the mainland during the 20th century. Nevertheless, at the

end of the twentieth century the population was more than twice what it had been in 1930.

NATURAL RESOURCES

Natural resources include forest and agricultural land, hydropower potential, and onshore and offshore oil reserves.

FURTHER READINGS

Luxner, Larry. Puerto Rico. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1995.

Marino, John. Puerto Rico: Off the Beaten Path. Guilford, Conn.: Globe Pequot Press, 2000.

Pariser, Harry S. The Adventure Guide to Puerto Rico. Edison, N.J.: Hunter Publications, 1996.

Porter, Darwin, and Danforth Prince. Frommer's Portable Puerto Rico. New York: Hungry Minds, 2001.

Scott, David Logan, and Kay W. Scott. Guide to the National Park Areas. Eastern States. Old Saybrook, Conn.: Globe Pequot Press, 1999.

Welcome to Puerto Rico! http://welcometopuertorico.org/ (accessed June 22, 2002).