Isla de Caja de Muertos, Puerto Rico
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Coordinates: 17°53′41″N 66°31′8″W / 17.89472°N 66.51889°W
 Beachgoers enjoy the beach in Caja de Muerto |
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| Geography | |
|---|---|
  Isla de Caja de Muertos, Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico)
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| Coordinates | 17°53′41″N 66°31′8″W / 17.89472°N 66.51889°W |
| Area | 1.54 square kilometres (0.59 sq mi) |
| Length | 2.75 kilometres (1.71 mi) |
| Width | 860 metres (0.53 mi) |
| Country | |
| United States | |
| Commonwealth |  Puerto Rico |
| Municipality | Ponce |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 |
| Density | 0 /km² (0 /sq mi) |
Isla de Caja de Muertos, or Caja de Muertos for short, is an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The island is protected by the Reserva Natural Caja de Muertos natural reserve, because of its native turtle traffic. The island is called Caja de Muerto ("Coffin", or more popularly "Dead Man's Chest") because it resembles someone lying down when seen from the main island.
The island is located 8.4 km south of the Puerto Rican mainland and is part of Playa barrio of Ponce, Puerto Rico, municipality. It is 2.75 km long northeast-southwest, and up to 860 meters wide (560 meters on the average). It has an area of 1.54 km². Close by are Morrillito Key (180 m off the southwest point, 0.04 km²) and Berbería Key (6.2 km to the northeast, 0.30 km²), both part of the Caja de Muertos Natural Reserve. Berbería Key belongs to Rio Canas Abajo barrio of Juana Diaz municipality.
The climate is dry and the island supports dry forest. A still-functioning lighthouse, Caja de Muertos Light, established in 1887 and automated in 1945, sits atop the highest hill on the island.
[edit] Name
Other than the aforementioned meaning of the name, it has also been suggested the island's name is related to the sea shanty "Dead man's chest", probably first written by Robert Louis Stevenson for his novel Treasure Island. Stevenson found the name "Dead Man's Chest" in a book by Charles Kingsley and said "Treasure Island came out of Kingsley's At Last: A Christmas in the West Indies (1871).[1]
[edit] Natural Reserve
The island was designated as a nature reserve in 1980 after a meeting was held in Puerto Rico by the Puerto Rico Planning Board wherein they considered the recommendation set forth by the Coastal Management Zone Program to turn the island into a protected wilderness area. The island has remained a protected area ever since.[2] The protection is mainly due to its heavy turtle traffic which is an endangered species.
