Carite State Forest ( Spanish: ''Bosque Estatal de Carite'') is a state forest and nature reserve located in the Sierra de Cayey mountain range in southeastern Puerto Rico. The forest extends over approximately 6,500 acres and is located in the municipalities of Caguas, Cayey,

Guayama Guayama (, ), officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama ( es, Municipio Autónomo de Guayama) is a city and municipality on the Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 36,614. It is the c ...

Patillas Patillas (, ) is a beach town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the southeastern coast, south of San Lorenzo; west of Yabucoa and Maunabo; and east of Guayama and Arroyo. It is spread over 15 barrios and Patillas Pueblo (the downtown a ...

and

San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...

. The forest is located along the '' Ruta Panorámica'' (officially the '' Luis Muñoz Marín Scenic Route''), which offers access to the forest.

History

Carite State Forest is one of 20 forestry units in the territory of Puerto Rico. This forest area was established by a proclamation in 1935 and was formerly listed as a state forest on July 1, 1975, through the Law of Puerto Rican Forests (Law Num. 133). The area was preserved with the intention of developing it for its timber industry. The state forest was established with the goal of protecting the hydrological basins of the Loíza,

and

La Plata La Plata () is the capital city of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. According to the , it has a population of 654,324 and its metropolitan area, the Greater La Plata, has 787,294 inhabitants. It is located 9 kilometers (6 miles) inland from th ...

rivers which were being affected by erosion caused by deforestation throughout the 20th century. In more recent times the forest has become an important wildlife preserve, ecological research site and recreational area.

Geography

This forest is located within the Sierra de Cayey mountain range. This range belongs to the larger

Cordillera Central Central Cordillera refers to the New Guinea Highlands. Cordillera Central, meaning ''central range'' in Spanish, may refer to the following mountain ranges: * Cordillera Central, Andes (disambiguation), several mountain ranges in South America ** ...

which extends through Puerto Rico from west to east. The highest point of the Sierra at 2,962 feet (903 m) in elevation, Cerro La Santa ( Spanish for ''peak of the saint'' or ''peak of the holy woman''), is located within the forest in the municipalities of Caguas, Cayey and San Lorenzo. This is the highest point in those three municipalities.

Geology

The mountains in the Carite Forest are of volcanic origin. The underlying rocks in the area located between the surface of the forest and depths of 3 km were created as a result of volcanic activity that took place during the

Early Cretaceous The Early Cretaceous ( geochronological name) or the Lower Cretaceous (chronostratigraphic name), is the earlier or lower of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous. It is usually considered to stretch from 145 Ma to 100.5 Ma. Geology Pro ...

period between 79 and 144 million years ago. About 13 types of soil can be found within the forest region.

Climate

The climate of the forest is humid and cool; the most humid time of the year is between the months of May and October, analogous to the wet season of the island and the region's hurricane season. The average annual temperature is of 72°F (22°C) and the average annual precipitation measurement is 85 inches of rain.

Ecology and conservation

Fauna

The forest is an important wildlife refuge and is home to 49 species of birds (9 of which are endemic), 15 species of amphibians, 12 species of reptiles and 7 species of mammals. About 9 species of animals that live in the forest are listed as endangered or threatened species, some of which are the Puerto Rican broad-winged hawk (''

Buteo platypterus brunnescens The Puerto Rican broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus brunnescens'') is an endangered subspecies of the broad-winged hawk (''B. platypterus''). It is a small hawk that occurs in Puerto Rico, inhabiting the Toro Negro State Forest.Accipiter striatus venator''), the elfin woods warbler (''

Setophaga angelae The elfin woods warbler (''Setophaga angelae'') is a species of bird endemic to Puerto Rico, where it is local and uncommon. Discovered in 1968 and described in 1972, it is the most recently described New World warbler ( family Parulidae). ...

''), Eneida's coquí (''

Eleutherodactylus eneidae ''Eleutherodactylus'' is a genus of frogs in the family Eleutherodactylidae.Hedges, S. B., W. E. Duellman, and M. P. Heinicke . 2008. New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography, and ...

''), the web-footed coqui (''

Eleutherodactylus karlschmidti ''Eleutherodactylus'' is a genus of frogs in the family Eleutherodactylidae.Hedges, S. B., W. E. Duellman, and M. P. Heinicke . 2008. New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography, and ...

''), the Puerto Rican rock frog or ''coquí guajón'' (''

Eleutherodactylus cooki ''Eleutherodactylus'' is a genus of frogs in the family Eleutherodactylidae.Hedges, S. B., W. E. Duellman, and M. P. Heinicke . 2008. New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography, and co ...

''), and the Puerto Rican boa ('' Chilabothrus inornatus''). The area is renowned for its population of Puerto Rican plain pigeons or ''paloma sabanera'' ('' Patagioenas inornata wetmorei'') which were formerly on the brink of extinction but were saved thanks to conservation efforts and is now considered stable. The golden coquí ('' Eleutherodactylus jasperi'') used to be found in this forest but no specimens have been found in recent years and the species are now considered extinct.

Flora

Carite is home to more than 204 species of trees out of which 176 species are native. There are 43 endemic species of plants such as the Puerto Rican magnolia (''

Magnolia portoricensis ''Magnolia portoricensis'' is a tree of the Caribbean region. Its vernacular names include jagüilla and Puerto Rico magnolia. It is native to Puerto Rico and it is found in the Toro Negro State Forest Toro Negro State Forest (Spanish: ''B ...

'') and the Puerto Rican raintree (''

Brunfelsia portoricensis ''Brunfelsia portoricensis'', the Puerto Rico raintree, is a species of flowering plant in the family Solanaceae. It is endemic to Puerto Rico, where it occurs in El Yunque National Forest.Eugenia haematocarpa ''Eugenia haematocarpa'' is a rare species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is endemic to Puerto Rico. It is classified as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and there has been a plan for its recovery in place for som ...

''), an endangered myrtle which can only be found in El Yunque National Forest and Carite State Forest. The forest's vegetation can be classified into three ecological zones: the

subtropical moist forest Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat (ecology), habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally foun ...

of Sierra palm trees which comprises 9% of the forest, the very humid subtropical moist forest which comprises more than 98% of the forest area and is home to the elfin or dwarf forest, and the low montane humid forest which only comprises about 0.5% of the forest area and is home to the ''palo colorado'' ('' Cyrilla racemiflora'').

Recreation

Recreation in the forest is managed by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DRNA). There are opportunities of camping, picnics and swimming. There used to be up to 25 hiking trails in the forest area; however, many of the trails have not been properly maintained, and some have never been reopened after being completely destroyed by hurricanes such as Georges and Maria. The only currently maintained trail is the Charco Azul Trail which leads to the Charco Azul swimming area.

Camping and picnic areas

The DRNA offices are open Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The recreation areas are open from about 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Most of the areas designated for camping and picnics are located uphill from

Guavate Guavate is a barrio in the municipality of Cayey, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 1,870. History Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became an u ...

in Cayey (in the past, the forest has also been referred to as the ''Guavate Fores''t) close to the famous '' lechoneras''. The picnic area close to the Guavate lechoneras have not been opened after being destroyed by Hurricane Maria and the only maintained picnic area is located in the Charco Azul section of the forest. As of 2020, camping areas have not yet reopened after the destruction caused by the hurricane.

Charco Azul

''Charco Azul'' (Spanish for ''blue pool)'', located in the municipality of

, is one of the main highlights of the state forest. This is a clear, blue-colored natural pool formed by the Charco Azul river falls, which flow into the Patillas River. The area, located along PR-184, offers sites for picnics, camping and showers and restrooms for people who wish to swim in it.

Gallery

File:Carretera PR-184, Patillas, Puerto Rico.jpg, View of the forest from highway PR-184. File:2022cerrolasanta2.jpg, Cerro La Santa from PR-184. File:2022bosquecarite6.jpg, Vegetation in the forest. File:2022bosquecarite5.jpg, Hiking trail near Charco Azul. File:2022bosquecarite4.jpg, Tabonuco forest. File:2022bosquecarite3.jpg, Creek near Charco Azul File:2022bosquecarite2.jpg, Sierra palm forest near Cerro La Santa. File:2022bosquecarite1.jpg, Tree ferns common in the forest.

References

External sites

Bosques de Puerto Rico - El Bosque Estatal de Carite
{{Protected areas of Puerto Rico Puerto Rico state forests Caguas, Puerto Rico Cayey, Puerto Rico Guayama, Puerto Rico Patillas, Puerto Rico San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico Protected areas of Puerto Rico Puerto Rican moist forests Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests of the United States