The Alvarado Lagoon System is a large estuary and wetland complex in
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
state of eastern
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. It is located on the southern
Gulf Coastal Plain
The Gulf Coastal Plain extends around the Gulf of Mexico in the Southern United States and eastern Mexico.
This coastal plain reaches from the Florida Panhandle, southwest Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, the southern two-thirds of Alabama, over m ...
, where the
Papaloapan
The Papaloapan River () is one of the main rivers of the Mexican state of Veracruz. Its name comes from the Nahuatl ''papaloapan'' meaning "river of the butterflies".
In 1518 Juan de Grijalva's expedition spotted the river, naming it Río de Alvar ...
and
Blanco
Blanco (''white'' or ''blank'' in Spanish) or Los Blancos may refer to:
People
*Blanco (surname) Fictional characters
*Blanco, a hobbit in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth
*Blanco Webb, character in the BBC sitcom ''Porridge''
*Graboid#El Blanco, ...
rivers meet 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 ...
.
Geography
The lagoon system includes several brackish coastal lagoons, including Alvarado Lagoon, many tidal channels and interior lagoons, and extensive wetlands and coastal dunes.
Flora and fauna
Habitats include large areas of
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 ...
, marshes of sedges (''
Cyperus
''Cyperus'' is a large genus of about 700 species of sedges, distributed throughout all continents in both tropical and temperate regions.
Description
They are annual or perennial plants, mostly aquatic and growing in still or slow-moving ...
'' spp.), and cattails (''
Typha
''Typha'' is a genus of about 30 species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the family Typhaceae. These plants have a variety of common names, in British English as bulrushStreeter D, Hart-Davies C, Hardcastle A, Cole F, Harper L. 2009. ' ...
'' spp.), swamp forests or ''apompales'' of ''
Pachira aquatica
''Pachira aquatica'' is a species of tropical wetland tree in the mallow family Malvaceae, native to Central and South America where it grows in swamps. It is known by its common names Malabar chestnut, French peanut, Guiana chestnut, provisio ...
'', palm forests of ''
Sabal mexicana
''Sabal mexicana'' is a species of palm tree that is native to far southern North America. Common names include Rio Grande palmetto, Mexican palmetto, Texas palmetto, Texas sabal palm, palmetto cabbage and palma de mícharos. The specific epith ...
,
Attalea butyracea
''Attalea butyracea'' is a species of Arecaceae, palm tree native from Mexico to northern South America.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q6122367
Trees of Northern America
Trees of Peru
Attalea (plant), butyracea ...
'', and ''
Acrocomia mexicana
''Acrocomia aculeata'' is a species of Arecaceae, palm native to the Neotropics.
Common names
Common names include grugru palm, ''gloo gloo'', ''corojo'', macaúba palm, coyol palm, and macaw palm; synonym (taxonomy), synonyms include ''A. lasio ...
'', and riparian oak forests of ''
Quercus oleoides
''Quercus oleoides'', with Spanish common names encina or encino, is a Mesoamerican species of oak in the southern live oaks section of the genus ''Quercus'' ( section ''Virentes''). It grows in dry forests and pastureland of eastern and souther ...
''.
The Alvarado Lagoon System provides habitat for numerous waterfowl and wetland birds, and 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 ...
. The lagoons are also an important habitat for the
West Indian manatee
The West Indian manatee (''Trichechus manatus''), also known as the North American manatee, is a large, aquatic mammal native to warm coastal areas of the Caribbean, from the Eastern United States to northern Brazil. Living alone or in herds, it ...
(''Trichechus manatus'').
346 species of birds have been recorded in the wetlands. 50% are year-round residents, 32% winter residents, 2% summer residents, 10% transitory, and the rest occasional visitors. The wetlands are a congregation area for waterbirds, including
northern pintail
The pintail or northern pintail (''Anas acuta'') is a duck species with wide geographic Range (biology), distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and North America. It is bird migration, migratory an ...
(''Anas acuta'')
American white pelican
The American white pelican (''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos'') is a large aquatic soaring bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Costa Rica, in winter.
Taxonomy
The Americ ...
(''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos''),
brown pelican
The brown pelican (''Pelecanus occidentalis'') is a bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae, one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mouth ...
(''Pelecanus occidentalis''),
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''), and
least bittern
The least bittern (''Botaurus exilis'') is a small heron, the smallest member of the family Ardeidae found in the Americas. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''.
Taxonomy
The least bittern was Species description, forma ...
(''Ixobrychus exilis''). White-winged dove (''Zenaida asiatica'') is plentiful. It is a breeding area for raptors, including the snail kite (''Rostrhamus sociabilis''),
common black hawk
The common black hawk (''Buteogallus anthracinus'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and vultures.
Description
The adult common black-hawk is long and weighs on average. It has very broad win ...
(''Buteogallus anthracinus''),
great black hawk
The great black hawk (''Buteogallus urubitinga'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and Old World vultures.
Taxonomy
The great black hawk was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist ...
(''Buteogallus urubitinga'') and
black-collared hawk
The black-collared hawk (''Busarellus nigricollis'') is a species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Busarellus''. It has a widespread range of presence, from western Mexico to Uruguay. Its natural hab ...
(''Busarellus nigricollis''). The
scissor-tailed flycatcher
The scissor-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus forficatus''), known as swallow-tailed flycatcher or scissorstail, is a long-tailed insectivorous bird of the genus ''Tyrannus'', whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. Its scientific n ...
(''Tyrannus forficatus'') and
eastern kingbird
The eastern kingbird (''Tyrannus tyrannus'') is a large tyrant flycatcher native to the Americas. The bird is predominantly dark gray with white underbelly and pointed wings. Eastern kingbirds are conspicuous and are commonly found in open areas ...
(''Tyrannus tyrannus'') are migrants. At-risk species include the snail kite, piping plover, least bittern,
peregrine falcon
The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known simply as the peregrine, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (raptor) in the family (biology), family Falconidae renowned for its speed. A large, Corvus (genus), cro ...
(''Falco peregrinus''), and
lesser yellow-headed vulture
The lesser yellow-headed vulture (''Cathartes burrovianus'') also known as the savannah vulture, is a species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae. It was considered to be the same species as the greater yellow-headed vulture unt ...
(''Cathartes burrovianus'').BirdLife International (2021). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Humedales de Alvarado. Accessed 12 October 2021
Conservation and threats
Threats to the wetlands include expansion of agriculture and cattle ranches, mangrove cutting, unsustainable fishing practices, and upstream erosion silting up the lagoons and wetlands.
The lagoon system was designated a
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
**