Cayos Cochinos coral archipelago protected in Honduras

Cayos Cochinos is a protected coral archipelago located in the Caribbean Sea off the northern coast of Honduras, northeast of La Ceiba. The archipelago is part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef system and is designated as the ‘Archipiélago Cayos Cochinos Monumento Natural Marino’ within the Honduran protected area system.

The archipelago consists of two main islands, Cayo Menor and Cayo Grande, featuring low, forested ridges, alongside several smaller coral keys composed primarily of coral sand. The surrounding marine protected area covers hundreds of square kilometers, encompassing reef plateaus, seagrass meadows, and sandy bottoms, creating a diverse underwater landscape with coral gardens at various depths.