The archipelago of the Azores lies in the warm Gulf Stream of the Atlantic Ocean. That has its influence on the richness of the plants found there. Due to the humid weather and temperate climate, many plant species actually thrive here.
The capital of the Azores, Angra do Heroismo on Terceira, first became a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1983). Founded in the 15th century, this city is known for its forts, the São Sebastia and the São João Baptista, and several Baroque churches.
“The entire mid-Atlantic reef has been in UNESCO biosphere application as a transnational world heritage site since 2017, with the entire Azores included.”
Between these distinctive walled fields are so-called canadas, unpaved paths about 1-2 meters wide, constructed to facilitate the collection of grapes and other harvest from the fields. Insofar as they are well connected, these canadas are nowadays also used by locals and tourists for recreational walking.
The coastal vineyards of Pico have also became World Heritage fairly quickly (2004). The production of wine grapes on Pico began as early as the 15th century. To protect the vines from the elements, specifically the so-called sea spray, a very fine, salty spray from the seawater that can precipitate down on the grapes deep in from the coast when the wind blows, vintners have since the beginning erected a complex network of basalt walls. These are particularly found on west to northwest, also southwest Pico, where viticulture has concentrated. Wine production on Pico peaked in the 19th century and since then declined, following disease outbreaks. In the 21st century, production recovered, yet on a much smaller scale, especially on the western slopes. Maintenance and harvesting in these fields so far has been and remains manual labor.
Meanwhile, the entire mid-Atlantic reef has been in UNESCO biosphere application as a transnational world heritage site since 2017, with the entire Azores included. Including Mount Pico (Pico), Capelinhos (Faial), and Algar do Carvão (Terceira), as well as submarine mountains and deep-sea hydrothermal fields in the surrounding ocean, an important habitat for special marine life. Because most of the ridge is under (deep sea) water, systematic mapping of these did not begin until the 1960s.
