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Puerto Rico
Written by: Kal Wagenheim
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Alternative titles: Borinquen; Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico; San Juan Bautista

Introduction Puerto Rico,officially Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Spanish Estado Libre Asociado de
The land Puerto Rico , self-governing island commonwealth of the West Indies, associated with

The people the United States. The easternmost island of the Greater Antilles chain, it lies

The economy
approximately 50 miles (80 km) east of the Dominican Republic, 40 miles (65 km)

Administration and
west of the Virgin Islands, and 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southeast of the U.S. state of
social conditions Florida. It is situated in the northeastern Caribbean Sea, its northern shore facing the
Cultural life Atlantic Ocean. Two small islands off the east coast, Vieques and Culebra, are
History administratively parts of Puerto Rico, as is Mona Island to the west. Compared with
its Greater Antillean neighbours, Puerto Rico is one-fifth as large as the Dominican
Republic, one-third the size of Haiti, and slightly smaller than Jamaica. It is roughly
rectangular in shape, extending up to 111 miles (179 km) from east to west and 39
miles (63 km) from north to south. The capital is San Juan.

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Official Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico (Spanish); Commonwealth of

name Puerto Rico (English)

self-governing commonwealth in association with the United States,

Political
having two legislative houses (Senate [271 ]; House of Representatives
status
[511 ])

Head of
President of the United States: Barack Obama
state

Head of
Governor: Alejandro Garca Padilla
government

Capital San Juan

Official
Spanish; English
languages

Monetary
U.S. dollar (U.S.$)
unit

Population (2014 est.) 3,579,000

1 Minimum number of seats per constitution; minority parties may have additional
representation.

EXPAND

Puerto Ricans, or puertorriqueos, have an intermingled Spanish, U.S., and Afro-

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Caribbean culture. The islands social and economic conditions are generally
advanced by Latin American standards, partly because of its ties with the United
States (including the presence of U.S.-owned manufacturing plants and military
bases in the commonwealth). Although that relationship has become politically
controversial, the vast majority of Puerto Rican voters have continued to favour
permanent union with the United States, with a slightly greater number favouring the
current commonwealth relationship rather than statehood. A small but persistent
minority has advocated independence.

The land

Relief
Puerto Rico is largely composed of mountainous and hilly terrain, with nearly one-
fourth of the island covered by steep slopes. The mountains are the easternmost
extension of a tightly folded and faulted ridge that extends from the Central
American mainland across the northern Caribbean to the Lesser Antilles. Although
Puerto Rican relief is relatively low by continental standards, the island sits less than
100 miles (160 km) south of a precipitous depression in the Earths crust: an extensive
submarine feature of the Atlantic known as the Puerto Rico Trench, which descends
to more than 5 miles (8 km) below sea levelthe Atlantics deepest pointat a site
northeast of the Dominican Republic. Powerful tectonic forces that over millions of
years have created these features still occasionally cause earthquakes in Puerto
Rico. The islands highest mountain range, the Cordillera Central, trends east-west
and exceeds 3,000 feet (900 metres) in many areas; its slopes are somewhat gentle in
the north but rise sharply from the south coast to the loftier peaks, topped at about
4,390 feet (1,338 metres) by Cerro de Punta, the highest point on the island. Near the
islands eastern tip, the partly isolated Sierra de Luquillo rises to 3,494 feet (1,065
metres) at El Yunque Peak.

The northwestern foothills and lowlands are characterized by karst features,

including sinkholes (sumideros), caverns, and eroded mogotes, or haystack hills
(pepinos). There is a continuous but narrow lowland along the north coast, where
most people live, and smaller bands along the south and west coasts that also
include densely populated areas. The Caguas Basin, in the Grande de Loza River
valley south of San Juan, is the largest of several basins in the mountains that
provide level land for settlements and agriculture. The islands of Mona, Vieques, and
Culebra are generally hilly but ringed by narrow coastal plains; Vieques rises to 988
feet (301 metres) at Mount Pirata.

Drainage and soils

None of Puerto Ricos rivers is large enough for navigation, but several northward-
flowing rivers are harnessed for municipal water supplies, irrigation, and
hydroelectricity, and along the south coast irrigation is essential for agriculture.
Puerto Ricos precipitation mainly falls on the north-facing mountain slopes, so that
most of the permanent rivers flow from the interior to the north and west coasts,
including the Grande de Loza, Grande de Arecibo, and Grande de Aasco riversall
of which are some 40 miles (65 km) longand La Plata, which extends 46 miles (75
km). The river courses on the south coast are dry most of the year, carrying water
only after rainfall. Pockets of alluvial soils on the south coast are somewhat fertile,
but all farmlands there are fertilized. Many formerly cultivated and eroded areas in
the mountains have been set aside as forest preserves.

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Climate
Puerto Rico has a tropical climate with little seasonal variation, although local
conditions vary according to elevation and exposure to rain-bearing winds. Northeast
trade winds bring heavy rainfall to the north coast, while the south coast is in a rain
shadow. San Juan receives about 60 inches (1,525 mm) of precipitation per year,
whereas El Yunque Peak farther east receives 180 inches (4,570 mm), and Ponce on
the south coast receives only 36 inches (914 mm). Rain falls each month of the year,
but the heaviest precipitation occurs between May and December. The average daily
temperature in the lowlands is about 78 F (26 C), but relatively high humidity
makes daytime temperatures feel warmer. Highland temperatures average a few
degrees lower. Hurricanes develop in the region between June and November and
occasionally traverse the island, including a storm in 1899 that killed about 3,000
Puerto Ricans; other devastating but less lethal hurricanes occurred in 1928, 1932,
1956, 1989, and 1998.

Plant and animal life

Plant life is abundant and varied. Tropical rainforests cover parts of the north side of
the island, and thorn and scrub vegetation predominates on the drier south side.
Most of the islands original vegetation was removed through centuries of
agricultural exploitation, particularly during the first two decades of the 20th
century, when farm settlers and plantation workers destroyed large tracts of coastal
forest and used the lumber for railroad ties and fuel. Although some woodlands have
been replanted since the mid-20th century, introduced varieties of trees, shrubs, and
grasses now predominate.

The scarlet- and orange-flowered royal poinciana, or flamboyant (Delonix regia), and
the African tulip tree (Spathodea campanulata) are among the flowering trees that
dot the mountains with patches of vivid colour against a lush green background. The
Caribbean National Forest in the Sierra de Luquillo southeast of San Juan preserves
rare species of orchids and the small green Puerto Rican parrot, an endangered
species. Puerto Rico has more than 200 species of birds, but land animals are mostly
confined to nonpoisonous snakes, lizards, mongooses, and the coqu
(Eleutherodactylis portoricensis), a frog whose name is onomatopoeic with its call
(co-kee!) and which has become a kind of national mascot. Numerous varieties of
fish abound in the surrounding waters, but edible and inedible species mingle
together, limiting commercial fishing there.

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Last Updated 6-30-2015

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