Ría Celestun Biosphere Reserve () is a

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, funga, or features of geologic ...

in Mexico. It is located on the northwestern

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula ( , ; ) is a large peninsula in southeast Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west of the peninsula from the C ...

in the states of

Yucatán Yucatán, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate municipalities, and its capital city is Mérida. ...

and

Campeche Campeche, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Campeche, is one of the 31 states which, with Mexico City, make up the Administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. Located in southeast Mexico, it is bordered by the sta ...

. The reserve is home to extensive

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

wetlands, and rich in birds and other wildlife.

Geography

The reserve covers an area of . It is bounded on the west by the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

. It adjoins Los Petenes Biosphere Reserve to the south, and El Palmar State Reserve to the north. The reserve includes coastal beaches and dunes, which enclose lagoons and wetlands. There are low uplands in the eastern portion of the reserve. The reserve is home to about 7000 people. Celestún, located on the coast within the reserve, is the largest settlement. It a center for visitor-serving activities and eco-tourism. Other economic activities in the reserve include fishing and harvesting sea salt.

Ecology

The reserve protects extensive

wetlands, part of a mangrove corridor known as the Petenes mangroves which extends along the western shore of the Yucatán Peninsula. Freshwater from the peninsula's extensive

aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...

has an outlet in the reserve, mixing with the salt waters of the Gulf of Mexico in the wetlands.Ria Celestún Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

Man and the Biosphere Programme Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the 'improvement of relationships' between people and their environments. MAB engages w ...

. Accessed 11 November 2022. There are coastal dunes, and tropical dry forests in the uplands. The reserve is home to large and diverse populations of migratory and resident birds, with over 304 species identified. 56% of species are year-round residents, 43% are seasonal, and 1% are occasional visitors.

American flamingo The American flamingo (''Phoenicopterus ruber'') is a large species of flamingo native to the West Indies, northern South America (including the Galápagos Islands) and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is closely related to the greater flamingo and ...

es (''Phoenicopterus ruber'') are a prominent species, with a population that can reach over 23,000 birds. Other bird species present here include the

plumbeous kite The plumbeous kite (''Ictinia plumbea'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae that is resident in much of northern South America. It is migratory in the northern part of its range which extends north to Mexico. It feeds on insects which it ...

(''Ictinia plumbea'')

brant goose The brant or brent goose (''Branta bernicla'') is a small goose of the genus ''Branta''. There are three subspecies, all of which winter along temperate-zone sea-coasts and breed on the high-Arctic tundra. The Brent oilfield was named after ...

(''Branta bernicla''),

Muscovy duck The Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') is a duck native to the Americas, from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. The species has been Domestic Muscovy duck, domesticated, and feral Muscovy ducks can b ...

(''Cairina moschata''),

piping plover The piping plover (''Charadrius melodus'') is a small sand-colored, Passerellidae, sparrow-sized wader, shorebird that nests and feeds along coastal sand and gravel beaches in North America. The adult has yellow-orange-red legs, a black band acro ...

(''Charadrius melodus''),

ocellated turkey The ocellated turkey (''Meleagris ocellata'') is a species of turkey residing primarily in the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, as well as in parts of Belize and Guatemala. A relative of the North American wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo''), it wa ...

(''Agriocharis ocellata''), Yucatan poorwill (''Nyctiphrynus yucatanicus''), Yucatan wren (''Campylorhynchus yucatanicus''), Yucatan jay (''Cyanocorax yucatanicus''), and orange oriole (''Icterus auratus'').BirdLife International (2022)
Important Bird Areas factsheet: Ría Celestún
Downloaded Accessed 11 November 2022. The reserve, together with the adjacent El Palmar State Reserve, is designated an

Important bird area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

Conservation

The area was designated a biosphere reserve in 2000 by the Mexican government. In 2004

designated it a biosphere reserve in the international

, and in the same year it was designated a wetland of international importance under the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on We ...

. In 2008 the Mexican government nominated the Ría Celestún and adjacent Los Petenes reserves as a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

.Los Petenes-Ría Celestún
UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Accessed 13 November 2022.

References

{{reflist Biosphere reserves of Mexico Ramsar sites in Mexico Protected areas of Campeche Protected areas of Yucatán Wetlands of Mexico Important Bird Areas of Mexico World Heritage Tentative List for Mexico