The Río Piedras drains the San Juan Metropolitan Area, the most densely populated area in Puerto Rico, and is the host watershed of our SUSE 7 meeting. Historically, the Rio Piedras played an important role in the lives of the people of San Juan. Now it is poorly known by the inhabitants of the metropolitan area. The goal of this presentation is to describe the main characteristics of the Río Piedras, highlighting its response to drought and hurricane disturbances. Urban impacts are present along the entire watershed. These include channelization and concrete lining in numerous tributaries, paving over ephemeral and intermittent streams. Impervious surfaces cover over half of the total area and ~72% of rainfall becomes stream flow, creating flashy hydrologies. The Rio Piedras is inhabited by a wide range of native fauna, with all native freshwater fish species of Puerto Rico occurring at densities similar to non-urban rivers. Aquatic insects are dominated by tolerant taxa, but there is a diversity of groups present. In addition to urban impacts, this watershed has experienced the impacts of a major drought event in 2015 and two major hurricanes in 2017. Two major disturbances that are predicted to increase in frequency and intensity in the future. Droughts play a significant role by creating conditions not normally experienced by native fauna. The 2015 drought resulted in the introduction of Red-Devil cichlids, which are now dominant and strongly affect the ecosystem. Although the Rio Piedras is highly impacted by urbanization and natural disturbances, it continues to be a complex and functional ecosystem providing important ecosystem services.