The Gulf of California is part of the Pacific Ocean. It is located in northwestern Mexico and is bounded by the shores of the Baja California Peninsula and the states of Sonora and Sinaloa. Its length is 1126 km, and its width varies from 48 to 241 km. The area of the bay is about 177,000 square meters. km There are about 900 islands in its water area, including Angel de la Guarda and Tiburon, the largest in Mexico. From the north, the Colorado River flows into the Gulf of California, and several medium-sized port cities are located along the banks.
History
The Gulf of California began to form about 130 million years ago in the Mesozoic era when, as a result of a tectonic fault, the land mass, which eventually became the Baja California Peninsula, began to separate from the mainland. About 4.5 million years ago, this water area was finally formed, but over the past time the peninsula has shifted another 650 km. It is assumed that, moving at a speed of 4 to 6 cm per year, after several million years it will completely break away from the continent, and the bay will become a strait.
In 1533, the peninsula and the bay were accidentally discovered by the conqueror of Mexico, Hernan Cortes, in honor of whom in 1539 the California water area received its middle name - the Cortes Sea. Conquistadors believed that in its northern part is the mythical Anian Strait, connecting the Pacific Ocean with the Atlantic.
The navigator Melchior Diaz in 1540 explored the northern coast and discovered the mouth of the Colorado, but the delusion about the strait was kept in geographical works until the XVII century. Cortes brought some pearls from the trip, which was later mined on an industrial scale, until an unknown disease in 1936-1940 killed the pearl mollusks.
On the coast of the gulf were bases of English, French and Dutch pirates, which disappeared after the final conquest of Baja California by the Spaniards in 1697. Economic development of the region began after the founding of Franciscan missions on the Pacific coast in 1768. In 1821, the bay became part of the independent state of Mexico (it was already shown on the world map since that time), and at the end of the US-Mexican war of 1846-1848, the US government agreed to leave the country with a peninsula and a narrow strip of land on the northern shore Gulf, thanks to which the Cortes Sea remains completely Mexican. Today, 8 million people live on its shores.
Climate
The climate of the bay is subtropical, with significant seasonal fluctuations. In summer, the air temperature reaches 30 ° C, in winter in the north it drops to an average of 9 ° C, but there are also frosts. The average water temperature is 24 ° C (up to 30 ° C in the summer and up to 16 ° C in the winter). There are light rains in the northern part of the bay from October to May, and tropical storms occur in the south in the summer.
Depth
The average depth exceeds a kilometer, but the bottom of the bay is cut by deep gutters reaching a mark of 3400 meters. In the northern part of the water area, especially near the mouth of the Colorado River, there are nine-meter high tides, one of the highest on the planet.
Fauna
The Gulf of California is characterized by an exceptional diversity of fauna, which is why this area, which is a natural laboratory for studying marine life, received the name "World Aquarium" from Jacques-Yves Cousteau. About 40% of all species of marine mammals of the planet and one third of the representatives of the cetacean family were found here. It is also the only place in the world where there are underwater sandy waterfalls.
In total, there are 36 species of marine mammals in the bay, 31 - cetaceans, five out of seven species of sea turtles, more than 800 fish, of which 90 are endemic, 210 - family of birds, as well as more than 6 thousand invertebrates.
Flora has 695 plant species, of which 28 are endemic. Every winter, gray whales migrate in the bay . In addition to them, migratory species include humpback whales and sperm whales. And sometimes giant blue whales swim in the waters of the bay. The most famous and poorly studied endemic is the California guinea pig, or wakita, the smallest among this family, whose length does not exceed one and a half meters. Opened in 1958, this species is endangered.
Bay value
The Gulf of California is fishing. It is very large, since 77% of Mexico’s fishing is in the Pacific Ocean and 80% of them in the Cortes Sea. Recently, unfavorable environmental changes have negatively affected the fishery, in particular the reduction in the flow of the Colorado River, the waters of which are diverted for irrigation. Other problems are overfishing, which makes population recovery difficult, and bottom trawling.
The islands
Before talking about the islands, you need to remember which ocean the Gulf of California belongs to. Of course, to the Pacific. The islands, most of which are rocks, are a nesting site for a large number of birds and an important corridor for migratory species, the number of which reaches 50%. Among the birds there are no endemic representatives.
The climate of the islands is arid, similar to the Sonora desert. Among the island flora in the area of such an area as the Gulf of California (it is easy to find on the map), cacti and other succulents predominate. There are swamps on some islands, and low mangroves stretch along the eastern coast of Tiburon. The fauna of these land areas is represented mainly by reptiles, of which there are 115 species, that is, approximately 10% of the herpetological diversity of Mexico. The largest land mammals are coyotes and small black-tailed deer.
On July 15, 2005, part of the bay and islands (5% of the territory) was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, since the biological diversity of the region is comparable to the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. There are nine protected areas in total, of which 25% are islands and 75% are in the marine area. The protection of a larger territory does not allow the political situation in the country and the opposition to fishing campaigns.
Tourism
Gulf of California is a popular international tourist area with a booming industry. It attracts annually about two million people who are offered beaches, diving in the waters known for their transparency. Available fishing, windsurfing, kayaking, archaeological, cycling, hiking and horseback riding, whale watching, visits to numerous places untouched by civilization. There are other varieties of eco-tourism.
Mexico is clearly visible on the world map, and the bay is also easy to find. In order to get to this place, you can pave the long way or short, but you definitely need to know that the emotions after visiting will remain unforgettable.