Réserve naturelle nationale du mont Grand Matoury, National nature reserve in Matoury, French Guiana

The Réserve naturelle nationale du mont Grand Matoury covers 2,123 hectares of primary tropical rainforest around a 234-metre hill, the highest on the Guiana Shield coast. Its slopes of thin soil over laterite are cut by creeks and broken by tree falls, while mangroves, marshes and grassy savannas lie to the south and west.

The forest on Mont Grand Matoury was worked since the 17th century, through the colonial era, with settlements and the Lamirande rum distillery. In 1942 a 166-hectare reserve was created on state land covering the north-east slopes and summit plateau, the first protected area in South America. A 1991 plan for transmission masts on the summit triggered the classification procedure, and a decree of 6 September 2006 enlarged the reserve to 2,123 hectares.

The reserve takes its name from the 234-metre Mont Grand Matoury, the highest point on the Guiana Shield coastline. Its slopes were worked from the 17th century, when colonial estates and the Lamirande rum distillery operated here. The reserve also holds a pre-Columbian Amerindian site, and the palm Astrocaryum minus, described in 1877 and thought lost, was found again on the massif in 1995.

Only the La Mirande trails are open to the public, and they are reserved for pedestrians; dogs are not allowed even on a leash. The reserve is managed by the Mairie de Matoury and the Office national des forêts. Visitors can choose between a botanical circuit and a more demanding hiking trail up the mountain.

The palm Astrocaryum minus was described by Trail in 1877 and then thought lost; in 1995 it was rediscovered on Mont Grand Matoury and is now treated as a distinct species. The reserve also holds a pre-Columbian Amerindian site.