The document summarizes what was learned from trips to El Yunque and Guanica State Forest in Puerto Rico. [1] El Yunque has a very humid climate and taller trees, while Guanica has a very dry climate and smaller trees. [2] Both forests have a variety of plant and animal communities that have adapted to their climate extremes. [3] Many species found in these forests are endangered, including the Puerto Rican parrot, due to threats from invasive species and human activities like hunting and habitat destruction.

1. El Yunque and Guanica State Forest: What I Learned
Nicolle A. Rosa-Mercado
RISE 2012
The Guanica State Forest and the Caribbean National Forest, or El Yunque, are very different
ecosystems but they have some similar characteristics. They are both located in the small island of
Puerto Rico and they both have a great variety of fauna and flora. El Yunque is a has a very humid
climate and has taller trees while the Guanica State Forest has a very dry climate and smaller trees.
The organisms in these environments have adapted to there corresponding surroundings by
developing characteristics that help them survive the extreme temperatures that they are exposed to.
These two ecosystems are essential natural reserves for the plants and animal that are considered
endangered species.
These two forests have a variety of communities within them. They are composed of several
different sub-forests such as the dwarf forests, which contain a different variety of species
according to their location and climate. Due to the extreme temperatures these plants have
developed characteristics, such as the presence of spikes in plants that grow in dry places, to protect
each other, mostly from the lost of water. The plant species in these ecosystems have also been
altered by the humans through different plantations of plants, such as the Dominican caoba. The
plant species in these forests vary greatly due to the geographical conditions around them.
Many of the animals that inhabit these ecosystems are considered endangered species. One
example of this is the Amazona vittata, or the Puertorrican parrot. During these trips, I learned that
other birds such as Margarops fuscatus, or zorzal pardo, destroy the eggs of the native parrot so
they can put their own. Other animals, like the rats and the Puertorrican boa, eat the eggs or the
chicks of the parrot. Humans have greatly interferred in the endangering of this species. Ever since
the Spaniards invaded the island they dedidacted their free tme to hunting birds, one of them being
our native parrot. Through the years humans have continued cutting down trees which served as
nesting sites for these animals.
During these trips I learned to appreciate the beauty withheld inside Puerto Rico. I noticed the
diversity of its flora and fauna and the amazing emergent properties that they have developed under
extreme circumstances. I also noticed what a shame it is that many of the people that live in the
island do not appreciate the importance of the beauty that surrounds them. I learned that everyone
should partake in the conservation of these ecosystems because they indirectly maintain a balance
in our environment. Puerto Rico is a very privileged island because of the diversity withheld inside
its shores. It is amazing how such different ecosystems can be contained within such a small island.