The remaining crucial habitats-dunes, mangrove forests, and moist coastal forests-are not only important to the survival of animal and fish species but also provide the first line of defense against tropical storms. With shifts in land use from agricultural to urban development, about 70% of the San Juan Bay Estuary Watershed is paved, and forest cover is highly fragmented. Connecting eight municipalities in the most populated urban area of Puerto Rico, the estuary is home to hundreds of thousands of people as well as 500 species of birds, mammals, amphibians, and fish.
The only tropical estuary within the National Estuary Program (NEP), the San Juan Bay has been recognized as nationally important by the EPA since 1992.
