El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve
The El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve, created in 1988,[1] is located in Mulegé Municipality in northern Baja California Sur, at the center of the Baja California Peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California. With an area of over 24,930 km2 (9,630 sq mi)),[2] it is the largest wildlife refuge in Mexico and borders the northern edge of the Valle de los Cirios Protected Area of Flora and Fauna.
History
Native groups first inhabited this region over eleven thousand years ago. They may have been nomads who came overland from the north of the American continent, or they may have been marine-oriented groups using boats to follow the coastline. At the dawn of the historic period, their successors were the Cochimi, foragers who exploited the natural resources of the coast, the inland plains, and the Sierra de San Francisco. Travelers trekking into this mountainous region can still see the natives' cave art. Spanish explorers arrived in the area in the 16th century. Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo was the first explorer to navigate the coastlines, whereas Sebastián Vizcaíno explored inland, in what is now the biosphere reserve in 1596 on behalf of Gaspar de Zúñiga, viceroy of New Spain.[3]
Fauna
Animals that have adapted to these extreme conditions include a variety of nocturnals such as coyotes, rodents, and hares; others have adapted to only ingesting water from succulents. Outstanding among the mammals is the Baja California pronghorn (an endemic subspecies of the pronghorn); the last populations of this subspecies can be found in the region. The Vizcaíno is also the habitat of the desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, and dozens of resident and migratory birds. Of special importance: the ospreys, cormorants, herons, and gulls—and four species of sea turtles. On the coastline and islets there are many marine mammals, such as northern elephant seals, California sea lions, dolphins, and gray whales.
View
References
- ^ Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve - Park Profile - General information. Retrieved 09-14-2008.
- ^ ANP 282 - El Vizcaíno Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 01-03-2015.
- ^ Jiménez González, Victor Manuel (July 2015). Baja California Sur - Los Cabos - Cabo San Lucas - Loreto - La Paz: Guía de viaje del Estado de Baja California Sur.
External links
- Cetacean Habitat.org: El Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve — with map.
- UNESCO: Whale Sanctuary, El Vizcaino World Heritage Site
- UNESCO World Heritage Sites: El Vizcaíno Whale Sanctuary information
- Explore the Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino in the UNESCO collection on Google Arts and Culture
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- Archaeological Zone of Paquimé, Casas Grandes
- El Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve
- Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California1
- Rock Paintings of Sierra de San Francisco
- Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino
- Camino Real de Tierra Adentro
- Franciscan Missions in the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro
- Historic Centre of Zacatecas
- Historic Monuments Zone of Querétaro
- Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines
- Protected town of San Miguel de Allende and the Sanctuary of Jesús Nazareno de Atotonilco
- Agave Landscape and Ancient Industrial Facilities of Tequila
- Revillagigedo Archipelago
- Historic Centre of Morelia
- Hospicio Cabañas, Guadalajara
- Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California1
- Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve1
- Earliest 16th-century monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl1
- Pre-Hispanic City of El Tajín
- Historic Centre of Puebla
- Historic Monuments Zone of Tlacotalpan
- Historic Centre of Oaxaca and Archaeological Site of Monte Albán
- Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla in the Central Valley of Oaxaca
- Pre-Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque
- Archaeological Monuments Zone of Xochicalco
- Aqueduct of Padre Tembleque Hydraulic System
- Central University City Campus of the UNAM
- Earliest 16th-century monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl1
- Camino Real de Tierra Adentro
- Historic Centre of Mexico City and Xochimilco
- Luis Barragán House and Studio
- Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve1
- Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley
- Pre-Hispanic City of Teotihuacán
- Ancient Maya City and Protected Tropical Forests of Calakmul,
- Historic Fortified Town of Campeche
- Pre-Hispanic City of Chichén Itzá
- Sian Kaʼan Biosphere Reserve
- Pre-Hispanic Town of Uxmal
- 1 Shared by more one region