The Sea of Cortez is unique in several ways: it receives more sunlight than any other sea (340-plus days of sunshine per year); it has extreme depths of greater than 2 miles; and it contains three distinct currents. The result is an abundance of microscopic plankton, the stable diet of marine life. Thus, in this environmentally-preserved ecosystem, the wealth of marine wildlife is unequalled anywhere in the northern hemisphere. It has been described as "Ferocious with life," by writer John Steinbeck, while legendary diver Jacques Cousteau referred to the Sea of Cortez as the "world's aquarium." In 2005, hundreds of islands in Mexico's Sea of Cortez were declared World Heritage Fund sites by United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as it is home to one-third of the world's whale and dolphin species. The Sea of Cortez houses twelve species of annual whales; including the Blue Whale (the largest animal that inhabits the planet), Humpback Whales and California Gray Whales, who travel 12,000 miles from the Arctic Sea to reach the choice lagoons which have become their annual birthing grounds.
The centre of the Baja Peninsula is predominately desert, covered by a series of both towering granite and magnificent volcanic mountain ranges. Because the coastal areas on both sides of the sea are mostly desert, the area surrounding the Gulf has been relatively unspoiled by human activities. The islands within the Sea of Cortez are probably some of the most pristine archipelagoes left on earth and host to more than 800 species of marine vertebrates. These include countless vibrantly-colored varieties of tropical fish and indigenous birds, such as: marine terns; blue, gray and white herons; pelicans; ospreys; and many others. Also included are mammals such as whales, elephant seals, sea lions and porpoises, including the California Gulf porpoise, or vaquita marina, the rarest of sea mammals, and only found in this region. Considered a great scientific "natural laboratory," many documentaries have been filmed on these waters. Imagine this unspoiled, sun-drenched landscape and shimmering turquoise sea, right outside your door. Welcome home to paradise.
|
|
|