Roque de Gando lies in the municipality of Telde on Gran Canaria. Its conservation rules received final approval in 2005 and were published in the Canary Islands Official Gazette. [1]
About three hundred metres northeast of the Gando peninsula, this rock covers only half a hectare. The 2005 conservation rules described it as Gran Canaria’s smallest protected natural area and as evidence of the retreating coastline: a remnant of the former shore now separated from the mainland. [1]
Its isolation also has scientific value because its reptiles and insects are separated from their counterparts on the coast. Protection began in 1987 within the Gando natural site, and in 1994 the rock was reclassified as a Site of Scientific Interest. [1]