page_title: Culebra, Puerto Rico
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Culebra, Puerto Rico / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Culebra Island, Puerto Rico, nautical chart, scale 1:20,000
context_page_description: Isla Culebra is an island-municipality of Puerto Rico and geographically part of the Spanish Virgin Islands. It is located approximately 17 miles east of the Puerto Rican mainland, 12 miles west of St. Thomas and 9 miles north of Vieques. Culebra is spread over 5 wards and Culebra Pueblo, the downtown area and the administrative center of the island. Residents of the island are known as culebrenses. With a population of 1,818 as of the latest census, it is Puerto Rico's least populous municipality.
  Originally called Isla del Pasaje and Isla de San Ildefonso, Culebra is also known as Isla Chiquita, Cuna del Sol Borincano and Última Virgen.
context_section_description: Culebra is an archipelago consisting of the main island and twenty-three smaller islands that lie off its coast. The largest of these cays are: Culebrita to the east, Cayo Norte to the northeast, and Cayo Luis Peña and Cayo Lobo to the west. The smaller islands include Cayo Ballena, Cayos Geniqui, Arrecife Culebrita, Las Hermanas, El Mono, Cayo Lobito, Cayo Botijuela, Alcarraza, Los Gemelos, and Piedra Steven. Islands in the archipelago are arid, meaning they have no rivers or streams. All of the fresh water is brought from Puerto Rico via Vieques by undersea pipeline.
  Culebra is characterized by an irregular topography resulting in a long intricate shoreline. The island is approximately 7 by 5 miles (11 by 8 km). The coast is marked by cliffs, sandy coral beaches and mangrove forests. Inland, the tallest point on the island is Mount Resaca, with an elevation of 650 ft (198.1 m), followed by Balcón Hill, with an elevation of 541 ft (164.9 m).
  Ensenada Honda is the largest harbor on the island and is considered to be the most hurricane secure harbor in the Caribbean. There are also several lagoons on the island, like Corcho, Flamenco, and Zoní. Culebrita Island also has a lagoon called Molino.
  Almost 80% of the island's area is volcanic rock from the Cretaceous period. It is mostly used for livestock pasture, as well as some minor agriculture.
caption: Culebra nautical chart
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