The Alvarado mangroves

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

(WWF ID: NT1401) covers a series 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 ...

forest areas along 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 ...

coast of the states of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

and

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 ...

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 ...

. they are the most northerly mangroves in the western Gulf. The largest tracts of mangrove swamps occur at the mouths of rivers, and nearby coastal lagoon.

Location and description

The Alvarado mangroves form in large areas at river mouths where fresh water from the interior mixes with saltwater from the Gulf in proportions that provide an advantage to salt-tolerant mangrove tree species. Depending on local conditions, mangroves in this ecoregion can occur from the US/Mexico border in the north, to the border between

state and

Tabasco Tabasco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tabasco, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Tabasco, 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa. It i ...

state 1,000 km to the south. Mangroves in this area are the farthest north, and are characterized by higher levels of freshwater than further south. The largest mangrove sites are (from north to south): *

Altamira Altamira may refer to: People *Altamira (surname) Places *Cave of Altamira, a cave in Cantabria, Spain famous for its paintings and carving *Altamira, Pará, a city in the Brazilian state of Pará * Altamira, Huila, a town and municipality in C ...

, a port city north of Tampico, is on a coastal lagoon that connects the estuaries of several rivers for 50 km to the north. *

Tamesí River The Tamesí River is a river in northeast Mexico. It is a part of the Pánuco River basin, in which it converges about 16 km from its mouth in the Barra de Tampico, in the Gulf of Mexico. See also *List of rivers of Mexico This is a list of river ...

, river that enters the Gulf at the city of

Tampico Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. It is located on the north bank of the Pánuco River, about inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and directly north of the state of Veracruz. Tampico is the fif ...

, supports mangroves for 60 km upstream from the coast. *

Pánuco River The Pánuco River (, ), also known as the ''Río de Canoas'', is a river in Mexico fed by several tributaries including the Moctezuma River and emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. The river is approximately long and passes through or borders the ...

, another major river that enters the Gulf at Tampico. *

Tamiahua Lagoon Tamiahua Lagoon (Spanish: ''Laguna de Tamiahua'') is a long coastal lagoon in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico that extends 65 miles south from Tampico. The peninsula of Cape Rojo separates the lagoon from the se ...

, a long inlet behind Cape Roja, that starts about 50 km south of Tampico. The lagoon is a RAMSAR wetland of international importance. Just south of the lagoon is the mouth of the

Pantepec River The Pantepec River is a river of Mexico that belongs to the Tuxpan River (Veracruz), Tuxpan River basin, on the Gulf of Mexico slope. The Pantepec River is considered the upper course of the Tuxpan River. The Pantepec River begins in the mountain ...

/ Tuxpan River. * Tecolutla River, a river estuary with coastal inlets and lagoons stretching 30 km north and south of the river mouth. * Alvarado Lagoon, at the mouth of the

Papaloapan River The Papaloapan River () is one of the main rivers of the Political divisions of Mexico, Mexican state of Veracruz (state), Veracruz. Its name comes from the Nahuatl ''papaloapan'' meaning "river of the Butterfly, butterflies". In 1518 Juan de Grij ...

. The lagoon is a RAMSAR wetland of international importance. *

Sontecomapan Lagoon Sontecomapan Lagoon (Laguna Sontecomapan also ''Laguna de Sontecomapan'') occupies an alluvial plain in the center of the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, , in southeast central Veracruz, east central Mexico on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico. The laguna is ...

, a RAMSAR wetland of international importance. *

Coatzacoalcos River The Coatzacoalcos is a large river that feeds mainly the south part of the state of Veracruz; it originates in the Sierra de Niltepec and crosses the state of Oaxaca in the region of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, flowing for toward the Gulf of M ...

, which enters the Gulf at the city of

Coatzacoalcos Coatzacoalcos (; formerly known as Puerto México; ; Zapotec: ; Popoluca: ''Puertu'') is a major port city in the southern part of the Mexican state of Veracruz, mostly on the western side of the Coatzacoalcos River estuary, on the Bay of Ca ...

Climate

The climate of the ecoregion is '' Tropical savanna climate - dry winter'' (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

(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. The summer is the wet season, and precipitation ranges from 1,200 to 2,500 mm/year.

Flora and fauna

The most common mangrove tree species are red mangrove (''

Rhizophora mangle ''Rhizophora mangle'', also known as the red mangrove, is a salt-tolerant, small-to-medium sized evergreen tree restricted to coastal, estuarine ecosystems along the southern portions of North America, the Caribbean as well as Central America ...

''), which can reach 17 meters in height and is typically found along the margins of channels with other Rhizophora species, black mangrove ('' Avicennia germinans''), and white mangrove (''

Laguncularia racemosa ''Laguncularia'' is a genus of plants in the family Combretaceae. The only species in the genus is ''Laguncularia racemosa'', the white mangrove. It is native to the coasts of western Africa from Senegal to Cameroon, the Atlantic Coast of the Am ...

'').

Epiphytes An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

are common, and a common associated plant is the golden leather fern (''

Acrostichum aureum ''Acrostichum'' is a fern genus in the Parkerioideae subfamily of the Pteridaceae. It was one of the original pteridophyte genera delineated by Linnaeus. It was originally drawn very broadly, including all ferns that had sori apparently "acro ...

''). Characteristic birds of the area include the sungrebe, black-collared hawk, bare-throated tiger heron ('' Tigrisoma mexicanum''), the tricolored heron ('' Egretta tricolor''), the near-threatened reddish egret ('' Egretta rufescens''), the jabiru ('' Jabiru mycteria''), the wood stork (''

Mycteria americana The wood stork (''Mycteria americana'') is a large wading bird in the family Ciconiidae (storks). Originally described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus, this stork is native to the subtropics and tropics of the Americas where it persists in habitats wi ...

''), that swallow-tailed kite ('' Elanoides forficatus''), the zone-tailed hawk ('' Buteo albonotatus''), the amazon kingfisher ('' Chloroceryle amazona''), and the prothonotary warbler ('' Protonotaria citrea'').

Protected areas

There are officially protected areas in the largest mangrove areas, including the RAMSAR sites: *

Laguna de Tamiahua Tamiahua Lagoon (Spanish: ''Laguna de Tamiahua'') is a long coastal lagoon in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico that extends 65 miles south from Tampico. The peninsula of Cape Rojo separates the lagoon from the se ...

. * Sistema Lagunar Alvarado. * Manglares y humedales de la Laguna de Sontecomapan.

References

{{reflist Neotropical ecoregions Ecoregions of Mexico Mangrove ecoregions Gulf Coast of Mexico