 The IBA comprises the largest remnant of Montserrat's native forest in the Soufrière Hills, in the exclusion zone.It has survived the volcanic eruptions and pyroclastic flows that have devastated and depopulated the southern half of the island since the late 1990s.It lies only about 1.5 km south of 915 m Chances Peak, the highest point of the island and the Soufrière Hills stratovolcano.