Isla de Lobos

The Isla de Lobos is a small island located about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) southeast of Punta del Este (Uruguay) in the Atlantic Ocean. An islet lies east of the island. Since 2024 it makes up the Island and Islet of Lobos and their Submerged Environment National Park a marine protected area. The island is an outcropping of rocks as a continuation of the Cuchilla Grande, in an area of the Atlantic Ocean immediately at the mouth (outer limit) of the estuary of Río de la Plata. Administratively, it falls under the jurisdiction of the department of Maldonado, although it constitutes a natural reserve. Somewhat to the northwest is the smaller Gorriti Island which is the secondmost southerly place in Uruguay. Isla de Lobos was exploited economically until 1992. Hunting the island's marine life was prohibited by law in 1991. Today it constitutes a nature reserve that is integrated into the "Coastal Islands National Park" administered by the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture, and Fisheries. At 1,250 metres (4,100 ft) from the island is an uninhabited rock formation on which stands a votive chapel built in 1945 by German and Italian sailors fleeing Spain and surviving a disaster.