Biosphere Reserves
Fajãs de São Jorge Biosphere Reserve: landscape and life
Explore Fajãs de São Jorge Biosphere Reserve, designated in 2016: coastal cliffs, wetlands and farming traditions, with sources to help plan your visit.
- Location
- Ilha de São Jorge, Açores
- UNESCO
- Biosphere Reserves · since 2016
Fajãs de São Jorge Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO in 2016, covers the entire island and a surrounding marine area. São Jorge belongs to the Central Group of the Azores and comprises the municipalities of Velas and Calheta. Its name highlights the fajãs, while the reserve also includes the central ridge, settlements and sea.
Understanding the fajãs
Fajãs are relatively flat coastal surfaces between cliffs and ocean. Some formed through the accumulation of material from slopes; others are associated with lava flows. This difference helps explain geology, access and opportunities for cultivation, rather than treating every fajã as the same kind of landscape.
The lagoons of Caldeira de Santo Cristo and Cubres add coastal habitats to that picture. In the uplands, peatlands and other wetlands show the importance of rain and fog. Ramsar wetland recognitions have their own scope and differ from UNESCO’s designation of the biosphere reserve.
Farming and identity
The fajãs supported distinctive settlement patterns, crops and movements between different parts of the island. Livestock farming and São Jorge cheese production help explain fields, work and food culture. Compare this tradition with our guide to Portuguese cheeses.
Religious heritage and island communities complete the landscape. Understanding a fajã involves its paths, cultivated land and relationships with the wider territory, as well as its coastal views. Leaving time for the inhabited parts of the island gives those landforms a fuller context.
Preparing a route
Start with the reserve portal and its visitor section. Choose an area and confirm route conditions, access, weather and local services. A heritage description does not guarantee that a trail is open or suitable for every visitor.
The Man and the Biosphere Programme connects conservation, research and sustainable development. Its scope differs from the Azores Geopark and World Heritage. Compare all fourteen territories in the index of Portuguese biosphere reserves.
Frequently asked questions
- When was it designated and what does it cover?
- UNESCO designated the reserve in 2016. It covers the entire island and a surrounding marine zone, rather than only the feature highlighted in its name.
- Is a biosphere reserve a World Heritage site?
- These are different UNESCO programmes. Man and the Biosphere connects conservation, research and sustainable development; World Heritage has its own inscriptions.