The Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California meet at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula. Here is a coastal freshwater oasis known as the San José del Cabo estuary. This unique ecological combination results in a remarkable biodiversity in the estuary, considered one of the most important and most threatened wetlands in northwestern Mexico. In fact, the San Jose del Cabo Estuary is considered a State Ecological Reserve, declared a Natural Protected Area in 1994.
However, this site of admirable scenery and abundant natural resources has been undermined in recent decades. Its beauty and the growth in tourist and commercial services have turned Los Cabos into a development pole of international scope, with up to 2.8 million visitors each year. Located at this crossroads, the San Jose del Cabo estuary requires multiple conservation tasks to protect wildlife and its habitat.
The estuary is one of the most important wetlands in the region, as well as an Important Bird Area under category G1 for serving as habitat for globally threatened species. The abundance of submerged aquatic plants and emergent plants, such as Tular, Carrizal and Palmar, are critical for shorebirds such as the California Least Tern (Sterna antillarum browni). Some endemic birds of Baja California Sur, with presence in San Jose del Cabo, are the Xantus’s Hummingbird (Hylocharis xantusii) and the Peninsular Mascarita (Geothlypis beldingi). The latter is listed as an endangered species by Mexican Standard NOM-059-ECOL-2001.
Attentive to our mission, at Pronatura Noroeste we are part of the conservation history of this natural site. We are part of the scientific technical subcouncil of the Advisory Council of the State Ecological Reserve of Estero San Jose del Cabo. Likewise, we have carried out biological monitoring of the Peninsular Mascarita. At the time, we collaborated in the project of Watershed Conservation in Baja California Sur, one of these watersheds being that of San Jose del Cabo. We also participated in the development of the chapter on ecological flow in the Integrated Management Plan of the Basin, Aquifer and Wetlands of San Jose del Cabo.
Since 2009, the site has been on the RAMSAR List, which catalogs wetlands of strategic importance for the planet. There are 217 species of waterfowl recorded in the estuary, 97 of which are migratory, and 19 are considered to be in some category of risk. In addition, this wetland is the last resting station for waterfowl and shorebirds that cross the sea from the Baja California peninsula to southern Mexico, Central America, and South America.
As you can see, environmental work in San Jose del Cabo involves not only organizations like us, but also government entities, tourism businesses, schools, research centers, and the community itself.
Join us in our conservation work in San Jose del Cabo and let’s make a difference together.
