Depending on one's interpretation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, it could be legally classified as a "rock", which would only give Venezuela a twelve nautical mile economic zone.

The island, along with its surrounding waters, has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports significant populations of brown noddies and sooty terns.

For some time the island has been in danger of eroding altogether, and Venezuelan authorities are considering ways to protect it, along with the territorial claims to the Caribbean Sea which radiate from Isla de Aves.

Throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, the inhabitants of the Dutch islands Sint Eustatius and Saba regularly visited Aves to collect turtle and bird eggs.

[7] In the meantime, in 1859, the Administrator of Sint Eustatius granted a concession to collect guano on Aves to ‘Edward Green, Kean & Co.’ of Baltimore at f. 2.50 per ton.

He decided that “even though Aves was never permanently settled by the Dutch, the inhabitants of Statia and Saba had made use of the island longer than anyone can remember,” which “constituted proof of possession.” He gave a provisionary concession and asked the Governor in Curaçao to confirm.

However, Isabella's judgment acknowledged the time-honoured rights of the inhabitants of the Dutch islands Saint Eustatius, Saba and Sint Maarten to fish in the waters around Aves.

By 1905, Isla de Aves was a municipality called "Municipio Oriental" part of Colón Federal Territory.

On June 2, 1978, ships of the Venezuelan Navy were sent to set up a scientific naval base named Simón Bolívar on the lee (west) side near the southern tip of the island, constructed as a platform built on stilts partially in the water, which was permanently inhabited by a group of scientists and military personnel.