BajaNomad

World Wildlife Foundation report of Baja

Mulegena - 6-20-2009 at 11:29 PM

The Gulf of California


© WWF
The Gulf of California stretches over 900 miles, contains around 922 islands, and is surrounded by the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa and Nayarit. Attracting more than two million sport fishermen, divers and tourists per year, it is also home to more than eight million people, including the indigenous Pápagos, Seris, Pimas, Yaquis, Mayos, Cucapás, Kikapús and Coras, who rely on the Gulf for their livelihoods.

This area is Mexico’s most important fisheries region, providing more than 60 percent of the country’s annual marine fisheries products and providing livelihoods for more than 40,000 artisanal (low-scale) coastal fishermen and 8,000 commercial fishermen. It sustains commercial fisheries with species like shrimp, sardines and giant squid. It is also important for sport fishing of billfishes and tuna, and coastal fisheries of many species such as snappers, rays and sharks. Aquaculture production is also very important. About 90 percent of the total harvested shrimp comes from farms located along the coastlines of Sonora and Sinaloa.

The depth variation of the Gulf helps create one of the western hemisphere’s most biologically rich seas. It is home to more than 6,000 species or subspecies of marine macro fauna, including 90 endemic species of plants and animals, 60 endemic reptiles, and five out of the seven marine turtle species in the world.



© WWF
At least 26 species of seabirds breed in the Gulf. Major seabird breeding areas occur in the Gulf and up to 240,000 birds can simultaneously be seen at a single one of its islands.

The endemic corvine-like fish, the totoaba, is listed as critically endangered here and the endemic vaquita – the smallest living cetacean and the most endangered marine mammal – is found only in the uppermost Gulf of California and has the most limited geographic distribution of all cetaceans. The Gulf and its surrounding waters are also important breeding and calving areas for endangered or threatened large whales, such as the blue, humpback, fin and sperm whales.

Threats to this area include unsustainable tourist, urban and real-estate developments; industrial, unsustainable shrimp and sardine fisheries; overexploitation and pollution of natural water sources; climate change; limited local capacity; and limited local knowledge and valuation of natural resources.

bajajudy - 6-21-2009 at 06:38 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Mulegena
The Gulf of California






endangered here and the endemic vaquita – the smallest living cetacean and the most endangered marine mammal – is found only in the uppermost Gulf of California and has the most limited geographic distribution of all cetaceans.



I quoted this sentence because our new boat is named Vaquita and everyone thinks that it means little cow. It is a 1974 Boston Whaler which is also an endangered species and how we came up with the name. I should print this article.

On a less personal note, this is surely good news.

Russ - 6-21-2009 at 06:57 AM

Good article in a small package. Thanks