It is thus seen that more than three-fourths of 

 the hind surface of Puerto Rico and tlie Virsjin 

 Islands is bare of trees. Far more than this has 

 been deforested at one time or another. 



The cuttinfr of the forests, done partly to harvest 

 their timber but more generally to clear land for 

 farming, took place primarily in the 19th century. 

 It eliminated tree growth from the more fertile 

 and accessible lands. Tlie remaining trees are lo- 

 cated chiefly on steep slopes, rocky mountain sum- 

 mits, or where excessive shallowness, drj'ness, or 

 wetness of the soil precludes economic farming. 

 Thus the best developed forests have disappeared. 

 Most of the forests remaining are those which re- 

 appeared after farming was abandoned on these 

 poor lands. 



The remaining forests are nearly all vei-y differ- 

 ent from tliose found by the early voyageurs. The 

 most valuable trees, both as to species and as to 

 size, have been removed. Few trees exceed 12 

 inches in diameter. Most of these are of species 

 unused for purposes other than fuel, and thus of 

 negligible value. These larger trees of inferior 

 quality tend to suppress the deYelopment of any 

 younger trees of more valuable species which may 

 be growing beneath them. 



A number of the introduced exotic tree species 

 have become naturalized in the forests of the 

 islands, now appearing as though native. Com- 

 mon naturalized species in the humid forests of 

 Puerto Rico include pomarrosa {Eiigenw jamhos), 

 emajagua {IHbiftciwi tiJiacevs), almendra (Ter- 

 minalia catappa), bucayo gigante {Eryfhrina 

 poeppigiana), and tulipan africano {Spafhodea 

 caTTipanidnta) . On the dry southwestern coast of 

 Puerto Rico bayahonda {Prosopis jullfora) has 

 become naturalized in pastures. In the TTnited 

 States Virgin Islands an outstanding naturalized 

 tree in the forests (particularly in St. Croix) is 

 Dominican mahogany {Sioiefenia mahagoni) and 

 in pastures, tibet {Alhlzia leiiek). 



FOREST CONSERVATION 



The trees and forests of Puerto Rico and the 

 Virgin Islands are a valuable asset. The orna- 

 mental value of trees around homes along the 

 roadsides and in parks is apparent to all. Tree 

 fruits provide valuable foods and important items 

 of commerce. Forested areas in the mountains 

 or along beaches offer peaceful shady environment 

 for outdoor recreation and on each of the islands 

 constitute important tourist attractions 



Not so apparent any more is the value of the 

 forests for the timber they supply. The best 

 trees have been cut long since, so this contribution 

 from the forest is no longer what it was. The use 

 of wood in construction and charcoal for cooking 

 is declining in the face of substitute materials. 

 However, the forests do continue to supply numer- 

 ous products, such as posts, which are of utility 

 in farming regions. 



The least obvious of the values of our forests 

 is as important as any other, their capacity to con- 

 serve soil and water resources. This protective 

 benefit from forest is unexcelled by any other 

 crop. The forest litter reduces surface runoff and 

 erosion. The porous soil beneath forests retains 

 its maximum capacity to absorb rain water — water 

 which may then appear gradually through clear 

 springs rather than in the form of muddy torrents. 



Tlie importance of the trees and forests of 

 Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands is not so much 

 a matter of their present contribution as it is a 

 question of what they might contribute. Past cut- 

 ting of trees and land clearing have reduced these 

 resources to a fraction of their potential. In 

 recognition of the possibility of enhancing local 

 foi'est resources, several conservation measures 

 have been taken. A brief history of this activity, 

 confined largely to Puerto Rico, is presented here. 



There is little recoixl of actual accomplishments 

 in forest conservation in Puerto Rico ])rior to 

 1900. Sixteenth century Spanish laws, reflecting 

 the scarcity of forests in Spain, were generally 

 unrealistic for the completely forested island of 

 Puerto Rico. Clearing of forests for farming was 

 then needed, rather than preservation of the 

 forests. 



Possibly the first indication of official interest 

 in forest conservation within Pvierto Rico was a 

 government circular of 1824 recommending that 

 strips of trees be left along and at the source 

 of streams {-U). The first appropriation of pub- 

 lic funds for forestry in Puerto Rico is recorded 

 for 1860 (33). Public forest reserves were estab- 

 lished in 1876 (7), and a forest department existed 

 in the colonial government during the rest of that 

 centuiy. The extent and condition of the island's 

 forest resources, as described at the end of the cen- 

 tury, testify that conservation efforts to that time 

 were not very effective. 



The first step toward forest conservation in 

 Puerto Rico during the present century was the 

 proclamation of the Luquillo Forest Reserve in 

 1903. This area was surveyed in 1916 and proved 

 to contain about 12,400 acres. The United States 

 Forest Service appointed a supervisor to admin- 

 ister this forest in 1917. In the same year the 

 Puerto Rico Forest Service was established and by 

 1920 was responsible for the protection of more 

 than 26,000 acres of unalienated forest lands in the 

 mangroves, at Guanica and Maricao, and on Mona 

 Island. 



Forestry activities were materially expanded 

 with the advent of the Civilian Conservation 

 Corps in 1935. Since that time the area of Fed- 

 eral forest lands has increased to about 28,000 

 acres, and the Commonwealth now administers 

 about another 50,000 acres. 



The public forests of Puerto Rico have been 

 placed under protection, improved, and put to use. 

 Boundaries have been identified and monumented, 

 and roads and ranger stations have been built 



15 



