The first recorded sighting by Europeans of Makira was by the Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña in June 1568.

More precisely the sighting and also landing in San Cristobal was due to a local voyage that set out from Guadalcanal in a small boat, in the accounts the brigantine Santiago, commanded by Alférez Hernando Enriquez and having Hernán Gallego as pilot.

The site extends from the rocky cliffs of the coast to the island's central Bauro Highlands, including the catchments of the Warihito and Raro Rivers, reaching an altitude of 1,200 m, and consisting largely of tropical rainforest.

The landscape is rugged, with steep-sided valleys, many streams and waterfalls, and small perched floodplains.

Potential threats to the environment are logging, invasive species and human population growth.