Cueva del Indio (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

for "cave of the Indian") is a seaside cave located along

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

cliffs in Islote,

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado, Puerto Rico, Utuado and Ciales, Puerto Rico, Ciale ...

along

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

's Atlantic coast. The cave and its surroundings are protected by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DRNA) as the Cueva del Indio Nature Reserve. The cave gets its name after the numerous petroglyphs created by the Taínos.

Ecology

The marine areas off Cueva del Indio are also protected as part of Cueva del Indio Nature Reserve, particularly the turtlegrass (''

Thalassia testudinum ''Thalassia testudinum'', commonly known as turtlegrass, is a species of Marine (ocean), marine seagrass in the family Hydrocharitaceae. It forms meadows in shallow sandy or muddy locations in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. Turtle gras ...

'') meadows which is important for the

West Indian manatee The West Indian manatee (''Trichechus manatus''), also known as the North American manatee, is a large, aquatic mammal native to warm coastal areas of the Caribbean, from the Eastern United States to northern Brazil. Living alone or in herds, it ...

and numerous other animal species.

Gallery

Cueva del Indio, Arecibo, Puerto Rico.jpg Entrada a Cueva del Indio, Arecibo, Puerto Rico.jpg

References

External links

* {{coord, 18.49274, -66.64155, format=dms, type:landmark_region:PR, display=title Caves of Puerto Rico Arecibo, Puerto Rico Limestone caves Petroglyphs in Puerto Rico Nature reserves Protected areas of Puerto Rico