20 



FOREST CONDITIONS OF PORTO RICO. 



summit portion of El Yunque, in the Sierra Luquillo, where there are 

 about 8 square miles of virgin forest. The island, although wooded in 

 the sense that it is still dotted by many beautiful trees, is largely 

 deforested from a commercial point of view. Porto Pico, at the time 

 of its discovery, was undoubtedly completely covered by forests of 

 many species of trees, but these can hardly be said to exist at present. 

 A few insignificant patches of culled forest also occur in the central 

 and northwestern portions of the island, which will be described 

 presently. (See PL IV.) 



WOODED CHARACTER OF THE ISLAND. 



To the casual observer, the aspect of Porto Pico in places is still 

 that of an open wooded landscape. The farms and plantations, except- 

 ing the tobacco and sugar fields, are not cleanly cleared like those of 

 the United States, but, on the contrary, individual trees are abundant 



Fig. 5. — Wooded mountains, Sierra Luquillo. 



and well distributed everywhere, (See PI. V.) Along the roadsides, 

 around every hut, and throughout the coffee plantations are many 

 trees, a few of which are remnants of the aboriginal forest, while most 

 of them have been planted for shade or fruit. Orange trees, mangoes, 

 aguacates, breadfruit, mameys, and other stately trees are common, 

 while, as in our own deforested region, there are a few timber-making 

 trees which have been spared the ax. Besides these larger trees, flam- 

 boyantes, nisperos, and guanabonas of smaller growth add their foliage 

 to the wooded aspect of the island. (See fig. 5.) 



THE VARIOUS FLORAS. 



So far as was observed by reconnoissance methods the island presents 

 two strongly marked and contrasting zones of vegetation. One includes 

 the whole of the mountains and north coast region and the other is the 

 foothill country of the south coast. The first is a region of great and 



