San Ignacio Lagoon (Laguna San Ignacio) is a lagoon located in

Mulegé Municipality Mulegé is a city in Mulegé Municipality, Baja California Sur, situated on the Gulf of California. Located on the Gulf of California, the population was 3,821 according to the Mexican census of 2010. History Indigenous peoples had lived in ...

of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur, 59 kilometers (37 mi) from San Ignacio, Mexico, and Highway 1. It is one of the winter sanctuaries of the eastern Pacific gray whales (''Eschrichtius robustus'').

History

San Ignacio Lagoon was discovered by a whaling captain, Jared Poole, brother-in-law to whaling captain Charles Melville Scammon. Scammon's visit to the lagoon in 1860 with six whaling vessels and subsequent whaling contributed to the near extinction of the Pacific Gray Whale. However, today the lagoon is one of the primary destinations for migrating Pacific gray whales. Today, it is an

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 ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. It is where gray whales can breed and calve undisturbed by humans. The whales may reach 45 feet in length and 40 tons in weight. This lagoon is also a United Nations

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 ...

, and a migratory

bird sanctuary An animal sanctuary is a facility where animals are brought to live and to be protected for the rest of their lives. Pattrice Jones, co-founder of VINE Sanctuary defines an animal sanctuary as "a safe-enough place or relationship within the cont ...

Facts about San Ignacio Lagoon

With a local community of fewer than 100 inhabitants, residents depend upon fishing and whale watching as their primary means of support. The lagoon stretches sixteen miles into the desert and has a maximum width of five miles. The lagoon is divided into three sections: The upper lagoon is the shallowest and is the birthing area where pregnant females bear their young. The middle lagoon is the corridor where mothers travel with their newborn calves to the lower lagoon. The lower lagoon is where most of the cetaceans reside and where the majority of the social behavior occurs. Here, males and females congregate looking for mates and newborn calves prepare themselves for the long journey north to their summer feeding grounds in the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...

San Ignacio Lagoon's significance to the world community

In 1988

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

established the

El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve The El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve, created in 1988, 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 ), ...

to include San Ignacio Lagoon, which is

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

's largest wildlife sanctuary. Not only is San Ignacio Lagoon a gray whale sanctuary, but it is one of only two undeveloped nursery and breeding grounds of the Pacific gray whale worldwide. The other is just 4 hours away in

Magdalena Bay Magdalena Bay ( es, Bahía Magdalena) is a long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the unpopulated sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena ...

. San Ignacio Lagoon is also the critical habitat for the nearly extinct ''berrendo'' or

pronghorn antelope The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American ante ...

, and an important feeding habitat for four of the worlds seven species of

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...

s: leatherbacks, hawksbills,

green turtles The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Chelonia''. Its range exten ...

and

olive ridley The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in th ...

s (all endangered). In 1993 the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

declared San Ignacio Lagoon a

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

site because of its importance to the world community.

References

Lagoons of Mexico Landforms of Baja California Sur Mulegé Municipality Pacific Coast of Mexico Protected areas of Baja California Sur Nature reserves in Mexico Ramsar sites in Mexico World Heritage Sites in Mexico Important Bird Areas of Mexico {{BajaCaliforniaSur-geo-stub