Berlenga Island is a small archipelago located on the Portuguese continental shelf 5.7 miles from Cape Carvoeiro, City and municipality of Peniche, District of Leiria, Central Portugal
The Berlengas Archipelago is made up of a group of small islands and coastal reefs distributed across three groups: Ilha da Berlenga, Estelas and Farírios-Forcadas.
The largest islands reach a height of around 90 m, but the remaining islets and rocks are small, barely touching the sea surface.
The Berlengas Archipelago presents a biological heritage of high conservation interest that includes endemic plants and protected habitats.
The Island hosts the nesting of several species of threatened seabirds, as the vulnerable marine ecosystem is one of the richest in Portuguese waters and the complex geomorphology of the islands and islets that form the archipelago is unique,
The importance of the Berlengas Archipelago as an island ecosystem, the biological value of the surrounding marine area, the high botanical interest, the role of the island in terms of marine birdlife, archaeological/underwater heritage contributed to the archipelago being classified as a Natural Reserve in September 1981.
The Berlengas Natural Reserve (RNB) includes the entire emerging area of the group of small islands and islets as well as the adjacent marine area with bottoms up to a maximum depth of 520 m.
The value and importance of this area for biodiversity conservation at European level were subsequently recognized when it was classified as a Special Protection Area for Wild Birds and integrated into the Natura 2000 Network.
The murrelet - Uria aalge is a bird adopted as a symbol of the Natural Reserve and has its only nesting site on Berlenga Island in Portugal.
The largest islands reach a height of around 90 m, but the remaining islets and rocks are small, barely touching the sea surface.
The Berlengas Archipelago presents a biological heritage of high conservation interest that includes endemic plants and protected habitats.
The Island hosts the nesting of several species of threatened seabirds, as the vulnerable marine ecosystem is one of the richest in Portuguese waters and the complex geomorphology of the islands and islets that form the archipelago is unique,
The importance of the Berlengas Archipelago as an island ecosystem, the biological value of the surrounding marine area, the high botanical interest, the role of the island in terms of marine birdlife, archaeological/underwater heritage contributed to the archipelago being classified as a Natural Reserve in September 1981.
The Berlengas Natural Reserve (RNB) includes the entire emerging area of the group of small islands and islets as well as the adjacent marine area with bottoms up to a maximum depth of 520 m.
The value and importance of this area for biodiversity conservation at European level were subsequently recognized when it was classified as a Special Protection Area for Wild Birds and integrated into the Natura 2000 Network.
The murrelet - Uria aalge is a bird adopted as a symbol of the Natural Reserve and has its only nesting site on Berlenga Island in Portugal.
The Classification of Berlenga Island
In 2011, UNESCO assigned the classification of World Biosphere Reserve to the Berlengas Archipelago, Portugal's fifth archipelago.
