La Encrucijada Biosphere Reserve ( es, Reserva de la Biósfera La Encrucijada) (established 2006) is a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Biosphere Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

situated in the Pacific Coastal Lowlands physiographic region of Mexico. It covers stretching over six municipalities in the Costa de Chiapas (

Pijijiapan Pijijiapan is a town and municipality in the Mexican state of Chiapas, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean about midway between the border with the state of Oaxaca and the international frontier with Guatemala. As of 2010, the municipality had a ...

, Mapastepec, Acapetahua, Villa Comaltitlan,

Huixtla Huixtla is a town and one of the 119 municipalities of Chiapas, in southern Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North Am ...

and Mazatán). It is composed of two large coastal

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') ...

systems that correspond to two core areas (La Encricijada and Palmarcito), and a wide variety of natural

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

s including

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in severa ...

s, '' zapotonales'',

tule ''Schoenoplectus acutus'' ( syn. ''Scirpus acutus, Schoenoplectus lacustris, Scirpus lacustris'' subsp. ''acutus''), called tule , common tule, hardstem tule, tule rush, hardstem bulrush, or viscid bulrush, is a giant species of sedge in the pl ...

swamps and marshes, as well as patches of

tropical seasonal forest Seasonal tropical forest, also known as moist deciduous, semi-evergreen seasonal, tropical mixed or monsoon forests, typically contain a range of tree species: only some of which drop some or all of their leaves during the dry season. This tropic ...

coastal dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

s and

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae **List of Arecaceae genera * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music * Palm (ba ...

trees. Eleven major rivers and their tributaries enter this ecosystem forming coastal lagoons where freshwater is mixed with sea water and the main activity is shrimp fishing. Biological diversity and richness of the site is extraordinary and includes a number of wildlife species such as jaguars, river crocodiles and

alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

spider monkey Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus ''Ateles'', part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in tropical forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to Brazil. The ...

s, and more than three hundred species of birds, one hundred of which are migratory. Approximately 29,300 people live in the biosphere reserve and are mainly engaged in four economic activities: fishing, agriculture, stockbreeding, and tourism. Major habitats and land cover types include of mangroves, of coastal

savana Savana is a town and commune in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Vohipeno, which is a part of Vatovavy-Fitovinany Region. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 4,000 in the 2001 commune census. Only primary ...

, of ''popales'' and tule marshes, of coastal dunes, and of water bodies. The marine area extends over and agricultural and stockbreeding areas cover .

Sources

References

{{Authority control Biosphere reserves of Mexico Protected areas of Chiapas Ramsar sites in Mexico Important Bird Areas of Mexico