The Puerto Rican tanager is a small passerine bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. It is the only member of the genus Nesospingus and has historically been placed in the tanager family, but recent studies indicate it as either belonging in its own family Nesospingidae or as being a member of Phaenicophilidae. Its closest relatives are likely the spindalises. The Puerto Rican tanager is known to locals as llorosa, which means 'cryer'.
The St. Croix macaw or Puerto Rican macaw is an extinct species of macaw whose remains have been found on the Caribbean islands of St. Croix and Puerto Rico. It was described in 1937 based on a tibiotarsus leg bone unearthed from a kitchen midden at a pre-Columbian site on St. Croix. A second specimen consisting of various bones from a similar site on Puerto Rico was described in 2008, while a coracoid from Montserrat may belong to this or another extinct species of macaw. The St. Croix macaw is one of 13 extinct macaw species that have been proposed to have lived on the Caribbean islands. Macaws were frequently transported long distances by humans in prehistoric and historical times, so it is impossible to know whether species known only from bones or accounts were native or imported.
The fauna of Puerto Rico is similar to other island archipelago faunas, with high endemism, and low, skewed taxonomic diversity. Bats are the only extant native terrestrial mammals in Puerto Rico. All other terrestrial mammals in the area were introduced by humans, and include species such as cats, goats, sheep, the small Indian mongoose, and escaped monkeys. Marine mammals include dolphins, manatees, and whales. Of the 349 bird species, about 120 breed in the archipelago, and 47.5% are accidental or rare.
The ruddy quail-dove is a species of bird in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. It breeds throughout the West Indies, Central America, and tropical South America. It has appeared as a vagrant in Florida and southern Texas. It lays two buff-colored eggs on a flimsy platform built on a shrub. Some nests are built on the ground.
Geotrygon is a bird genus in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). Its members are called quail-doves, and all live in the Neotropics. The species of this genus have ranges from southern Mexico and Central America to the West Indies and South America, with 2 species recorded as occasional vagrants reported in Texas and Florida in the United States. Quail-doves are ground-dwelling pigeons that live, nest, and feed in dense forests. They are remarkable for their vivid coloration with light-and-dark facial markings.
The grey-fronted quail-dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to Cuba.
The bridled quail-dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found from Saint Lucia in the Lesser Antilles north and west to Puerto Rico.
The white-fronted quail-dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Dominican Republic on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola; it is possibly extirpated from Haiti.
The Antillean cave rail, also known as DeBooy's rail, is an extinct species of flightless bird which occurred on Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands.
Titanohierax gloveralleni, also known as the Bahama eagle, is a large species of extinct hawk from the Late Quaternary of the Caribbean. Remains of the animal have been found on multiple islands in The Bahamas. The animal is known from a handful of bones found across multiple islands, including a tarsometatarsus, partial metacarpal, and nearly complete right ulna. The animal was described based on the former two by Alexander Wetmore in 1937, with all other currently referred material being assigned by Storrs Olson and colleagues in 1982.
The Puerto Rican barn owl is an extinct species of barn owl that inhabited the island of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. It is sometimes considered to be a subspecies of the ashy-faced owl.
The Puerto Rican crow is an extinct crow species in the family Corvidae that was endemic to Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. Little is known about its habitat, but it possibly died out after the colonization of humans on these islands.
Rio Abajo State Forest is a forest preserve in Puerto Rico owned by the Department of Natural Resources and one of the 20 state forests in the island. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1980 and constitutes an area of 3,590 acres. It consists mostly of subtropical wet and moist karst forest. Mogotes and sinkholes fill the landscape. The forest preserve is located in the municipalities of Arecibo and Utuado. In addition to its ecological value the forest also contains a number of archaeological sites.
Pholidoscelis wetmorei is a species of lizard in the family Teiidae (whiptails). The species is endemic to Puerto Rico. Its common names include the Puerto Rican blue-tailed ameiva, Wetmore's ameiva, blue-tailed ground lizard, and siguana de rabo azul.
Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve consists of two islands, Mona and Monito, in the Mona Passage off western Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. Mona and Monito Islands Nature Reserve encompasses both land and marine area, and with an area of 38,893 acres it is the largest protected natural area in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Much like the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean, the Mona and Monito Islands reserve represents a living laboratory for archaeological, biological, geological, oceanographical and wildlife management research.
