Mona (Spanish: Isla de Mona) is the third-largest island of the Puerto Ricanarchipelago, after the main island of Puerto Rico and Vieques. It is the largest of three islands in the Mona Passage, a strait between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, the others being Monito Island and Desecheo Island. It measures about 7 miles by 4 miles (11 km by 7 km), and lies 41 mi (66 km) west of Puerto Rico, of which it is administratively a part. It is one of two islands that make up the Isla de Mona e Islote Monito barrio in the municipality of Mayagüez.
The island is managed under the Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve (Reserva Natural Islas de Mona y Monito). There are no native inhabitants; only rangers and biologists from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources reside on the island, to manage visitors and take part in research projects. The island, along with Monito, form part of the Mona and Monito IslandsNational Natural Landmark which recognizes and preserves the islands’ ecosystem as an outstanding example of diversity and natural history. The island is home to a number of endemic species such as the Mona ground iguana and it is an important seabird area.
There are around 200 caves, including El gato, La esperanza, La negra, Los ingleses, El rifle, El toro, Del norte, Ataúd, Nuevos Lirios and Gallinas on Isla de Mona, with thousands of examples of native art, marks and later on, graffiti.
Mona Island hosts a large and increasing hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) rookery with over 1,500 clutches laid annually on its beaches. The island is recognized as one of the principal sites for hawksbill nesting in the Wider Caribbean and Western Atlantic region, along with Mexico (Yucatán peninsula beaches), Barbados, Panama (Bocas del Toro), and Brazil.
