Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California World Heritage Site

Official name

Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California | UNESCO

Country

Mexico | Map

Continent

North America

Location

States of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa, and Nayarit
27.6266° Lat, -112.5458° Lon | Map

Code

1182

Time Zone

America/Mexico_City (CST, -0600)

Current Time

Category

Natural

Description

Inscribed 2005. The site comprises 244 islands, islets and coastal areas that are located in the Gulf of California in north-eastern Mexico. The Sea of Cortez and its islands have been called a natural laboratory for the investigation of speciation. Moreover, almost all major oceanographic processes occurring in the planet’s oceans are present in the property, giving it extraordinary importance for study. The site is one of striking natural beauty in a dramatic setting formed by rugged islands with high cliffs and sandy beaches, which contrast with the brilliant reflection from the desert and the surrounding turquoise waters. It is home to 695 vascular plant species, more than in any marine and insular property on the World Heritage List. Equally exceptional is the number of fish species: 891, 90 of them endemic. The site, moreover, contains 39% of the world’s total number of species of marine mammals and a third of the world’s marine cetacean species.