Isla Desecheo
Desecheo Island sits uninhabited and mysterious on
the horizon off the coast from Rincon. It has a storied past, and is
today a National Wildlife Refuge administered by the U.S.
Department of Fish and Wildlife Services.
Because Isla Desecheo has a healthy reef and water
clear enough to see from 100 to 150 feet, it is very popular with
divers. But the island itself is closed to all visitors due to the
presence of unexploded military shells. |
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Location
Isla Desecheo is located about 14 miles off the west
coast of Puerto Rico, and is about 40 minutes by boat from
Rincon.
The 360-acre island is about 1.1 miles in diameter, and is
located in the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and Hispaniola,
Geological evidence suggests that it was once connected to Puerto
Rico. |
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A Storied History
Desecheo was discovered by Christopher Columbus, and
has been claimed by Spain, Cuba, and the United States.
While uninhabited, the island has been used by
pirates (19th cent.) and smugglers and bandits (19th, 20th cent.);
by U.S. Marines (Spanish-American War); the U.S. Armed Forces as a
bombing range (1942-52); the U.S. Air Force for survival training
(1952-64); the National Institute of Health for animal experiments (1966-86); and as a base
by several amateur radio expeditions. It is closed to the public
today. |
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Geography of Isla Desecheo
The island terrain is steep, rocky and rugged. Its highest peak
is 218 m (715 ft). It has no known bodies of water and 40 inches
of rain.
Landing is possible at Puerto Canoitas (on the south). Puerto
Manolillo (west), Puerto de Lobo Botes (on the southwest) where
several small houses remain on a mesa 400 feet above the sea, and
nearby Punta Culebron where the ruins of a lighthouse stand.
Around the island are several small islets including (El Murro
(on the west) and Islotes Dospiedras (on the east). |
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Sunset on Isla Desecheo
The Desecheo Wildlife Refuge was established in 1912 to protect a large nesting colony of brown boobies. Seabird
nesting has virtually disappeared from the island due to past military bombing, illegal hunting, fires,
and the introduction of rats and nest-predating rhesus monkeys.
Administration of the refuge was turned over in 1976
to the Department of Fish & Wildlife Services, with the
objective of restoring and protecting historic seabird colonies and
natural island ecosystems. |
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