• Source: Mexican South Pacific Coast mangroves

The Mexican South Pacific Coast mangroves ecoregion (WWF ID: NT1422) covers the mangrove sites along the coast of the Pacific Ocean coast of Mexico, across the states of Michoacán, Guerrero, and Oaxaca. These mangrove forests are mostly around lagoons, typically those fed by rivers from the interior in the Sierra Madre del Sur Mountains. The ecoregion is small: collectively, it covers only 1,295 km2.




Location and description


The ecoregion stretches across 1,000 km of the coast, primarily around the margins of river deltas and lagoons. Major mangrove sites are found at:

Lázaro Cárdenas, in the state of Michoacán at the mouth of the Balsas River. A RAMSAR wetland of international importance. This are affected by the port of Lázaro Cárdenas, the largest seaport in Mexico.
Zihuatanejo, a city on the coast of Guerrero
Barra de Potosí, a lagoon behind a small fishing village in the municipality of Petatlán
San Luis de la Loma, a town on the coast in the municipality of Tecpan de Galeana
Atoyac de Álvarez, a town behind two coastal lagoons in Guerrero
Puerto Marqués, 10 km south of Acapulco
Papagayo River delta, and nearby lagoons
Ometepec River delta and nearby lagoons
Laguna de Corralero on the coast of the municipality of Pinotepa Nacional in Oaxaca
Lagunas de Chacahua National Park, at the mouth of the Río Verde (Oaxaca)
Lagoons north and south of Puerto Escondido in Oaxaca
The coastal strip south of Salina Cruz




Climate


The climate of the ecoregion is Tropical savanna climate - dry winter (Köppen climate classification (Aw)). This climate is characterized by relatively even temperatures throughout the year, and a pronounced dry season. The driest month has less than 60 mm of precipitation, and is drier than the average month.




Flora and fauna


The characteristic trees species are red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle), white mangrove (Laguncularia racemosa), black mangrove (Avicennia germinans) and buttonwood (Conocarpus erectus). Aquatic plants in the lagoons include water hyacinth (Eichhornia).




Protected areas


Officially protected areas in the ecoregion include:

Lagunas de Chacahua National Park




References

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Mexican South Pacific Coast mangroves
• Marismas Nacionales–San Blas mangroves
• Central America bioregion
• List of Neotropical ecoregions by bioregion
• Tehuantepec–El Manchón mangroves
• List of ecoregions in Mexico
• Mangrove tree distribution
• Neotropical realm
• Global 200
• List of terrestrial ecoregions (WWF)