| El Toro Wilderness | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Location in Puerto Rico | |
| Location | El Yunque National Forest |
| Nearest city | Canovanas, Puerto Rico |
| Coordinates | 18°16′13″N 65°49′44″W / 18.27028°N 65.82889°W |
| Area | 10,254 acres (41.5 km2) |
| Established | December 2005 |
| Governing body | United States Forest Service |
El Toro Wilderness (Spanish: Selva El Toro) is a 10,254-acre (41.5 km2) federally designated National Wilderness Preservation System unit located within El Yunque National Forest (formerly known as the Caribbean National Forest) on the Sierra de Luquillo in eastern Puerto Rico. El Toro, named after the highest peak in the forest at 3,524 feet (1,074 m), is the only tropical wilderness in the United States National Forest System.[2] It was created in 2005 by the Caribbean National Forest Act of 2005.[3]
In descending order of land area, the wilderness is located in parts of the municipalities of Río Grande, Naguabo, Las Piedras, and Canóvanas. El Toro Wilderness, along with the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF), is part of the Luquillo Biosphere Reserve, a designated UNESCO biosphere reserve, which emphasizes the site’s importance in the global protection of biodiversity through conservation action.[4]
- ^ Protected Planet Website- Retrieved April 13, 2023
- ^ El Toro Wilderness fact sheet - U.S. Forest Service
- ^ "Caribbean National Forest Act of 2005 (2005 - H.R. 539)". GovTrack.us. Retrieved 2020-05-22.
- ^ IUCN WCPA Wilderness Specialist Group. "Wilderness Protected Areas: Management guidelines for IUCN Category 1b protected areas" (PDF).