Campeche and Tabasco Lagoon System IMMA
Size in Square Kilometres
18 909 km2
Qualifying Species and Criteria
Antillean/Greater Caribbean Manatee – Trichechus manatus manatus
Criterion A; Criterion B (1)
Common Bottlenose Dolphin – Tursiops truncatus
Criterion B (2)
Marine Mammal Diversity
Trichechus manatus manatus
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Summary
The Campeche and Tabasco Lagoon Systems IMA is located in the Southern Gulf of Mexico. It is the largest lagoon system in Mexico. It encompasses estuarine and shelf habitats with strong seasonal gradients in water properties influenced by high nutrient inputs from river discharges that are supporting high diversity of species. This IMMA hosts resident populations of the Antillean, or Greater Caribbean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus), including a unique riverine ecotype of this Endangered species. The area also hosts large aggregations of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are found in this area in great numbers throughout the year, with well-known nursing and feeding grounds. Terminos Lagoon and its surroundings were declared a protected natural area with the status of Flora and Fauna Protection Area for its diversity and ecological richness.
Description of Qualifying Criteria
Criterion A: Species or Population Vulnerability
The Antillean, or Greater Caribbean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus) inhabits coastal areas along the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, and the Bay of Campeche (Olivera-Gómez et al., 2022). It is considered Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Morales-Vela et al. 2024). This species is considered Endangered under the Mexican Official Norm (SEMARNAT, 2010), with documented local extirpations in the northern Gulf of Mexico, possibly attributed to the increase of human activities (Serrano et al., 2007). In Mexico, there are three key Antillean manatee distribution areas: 1) the region of rivers and estuaries in the state of Veracruz (the only remaining population with a northern distribution mainly in the central and southern parts of the state), 2) the region of the hydrological basins of the Grijalva and Usumacinta rivers in Tabasco and Chiapas and southern Campeche (particularly in the Terminos Lagoon and the Palizada, Candelaria, and Chumpán rivers), and 3) the Caribbean coastal region from Holbox to the Hondo river in Quintana Roo. (SEMARNAT, 2020).
Criterion B: Distribution and Abundance
Sub-criterion B2: Small and Resident Populations
This IMMA covers the Grijalva and Usumacinta river basins in Tabasco and southern Campeche, including the Terminos Lagoon and the Palizada, Candelaria, and Chumpán rivers which host a significant proportion of Mexico’s manatee populations (SEMARNAT, 2020). The south-eastern portion of Pantanos de Centla Biosphere Reserve, known “los Bitzales” hosts some of the highest concentrations of manatees (Olivera-Gómez et al 2022) along with the Grijalba-Usumacinta River basins and San Pedro Martir River (Puc-Carrasco et al. 2017). An isolated population of about 24 manatees (CV of 16 -24%) is confined within Laguna de las Ilusiones, Tabasco, a landlocked lake (Pérez-Garduza et al., 2023). This IMMA covers all these riverine and lagoon systems with abundant and diverse flora, including submerged, emergent, floating, and riverbank vegetation that provide nourishment for manatees (Pablo-Rodríguez et al. 2015).
Riverine manatees are opportunistic herbivorous mammals adapted to the seasonal dynamic of the region, including major fluctuations of water levels between dry and wet seasons (Pablo-Rodríguez et al. 2016). Individuals from inland populations may move along the coast from one area to another (Olivera-Gómez et al 2022). However, there is no evidence that manatees from this area travel to the northern Gulf of Mexico or towards the Caribbean (Deutsch et al. 2022).
Sub-criterion B2: Aggregations
Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) inhabiting the Terminos Lagoon System are highly abundant, with an estimated 3,484 individuals during 1989-1999, and 2,912 individuals during 2005-2008, of which less than 10% exhibit long term site fidelity (Delgado-Estrella, 2015; García-González, 2015). Long-term data indicates there is a large aggregation of individuals that visit the lagoon occasionally or seasonally, as the lagoon provides them with prey throughout the year (Delgado-Estrella, 2002; García-González, 2015). This is also a well-known nursing and breeding area for this species (Delgado-Estrella, 2002).
Criterion D: Special Attributes
Sub-criterion D1: Distinctiveness
Antillean manatees in Mexico are separated into two clusters with low genetic diversity- one in the Gulf of Mexico and the other in the Mexican Caribbean (Nourisson et al 2011). This IMMA contains the unique Gulf of Mexico population of the riverine ecotype of Trichechus manatus manatus with the lowest documented genetic diversity (probably due to a combination of founder and bottleneck effects) (Nourisson et al 2011). The riverine manatee ecotype of this subspecies found in this region is consistently thinner and lighter in mass than its coastal counterparts, even those from nearby countries (Castelblanco-Martínez et al., 2022).
Supporting Information
Castelblanco-Martínez, D. N., Slone, D. H., Landeo-Yauri, S. S., Ramos, E. A., Álvarez-Alemán, A., Attademo, F. L. & Mignucci-Giannoni, A. A. (2021). Analysis of body condition indices reveals different ecotypes of the Antillean manatee. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 19451.
Delgado-Estrella, A. 2015. ‘Patrones de residencia y movimientos a largo plazo de las toninas Tursiops truncatus, en la región sureste del Golfo de México’. Therya (online). Vol.6, n.2, pp.297-314. ISSN 2007-3364. DOI:10.12933/therya-15-265
Deutsch, C.J., Self-Sullivan, C. & Mignucci-Giannoni, A. 2008. ‘Trichechus manatus’. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2008: e.T22103A9356917. DOI:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T22103A9356917.en. Accessed on 20 April 2024.
Deutsch, C. J., Castelblanco-Martínez, D. N., Groom, R., & Cleguer, C. (2022). Movement behavior of manatees and dugongs: I. Environmental challenges drive diversity in migratory patterns and other large-scale movements. In Ethology and behavioral ecology of sirenia (pp. 155-231). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
DOF. Diario Oficial de la Federación. 1994. DECRETO por el que se declara como área natural protegida con el carácter de área de protección de flora y fauna, la región conocida como Laguna de Términos, ubicada en los municipios de Carmen, Palizada y Champotón, Camp. https://dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=4745237&fecha=27/09/1994#gsc.tab=0
García-González, M.A. 2015. Estructura social de toninas Tursiops truncatus en la Laguna de Términos, Campeche. Master Thesis. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México. Recuperado de: https://repositorio.unam.mx/contenidos/298011
INE, Instituto Nacional de Ecología. 1997. Programa de Manejo del Área de Protección de Flora y Fauna Laguna de Términos México. SEMARNAP, México. 166 pp.
Morales-Vela, B., Quintana-Rizzo, E. & Mignucci-Giannoni, A. 2024. Trichechus manatus ssp. manatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T22105A43793924. Accessed on 01 December 2024.
Nourisson, C., Morales-Vela, B., Padilla-Saldívar, J., Tucker, K. P., Clark, A., Olivera-Gómez, L. D., … & McGuire, P. (2011). Evidence of two genetic clusters of manatees with low genetic diversity in Mexico and implications for their conservation. Genetica, 139, 833-842.
Olivera-Gómez, L. D., Jiménez-Domínguez, D., Morales-Vela, B., and García-Herrera, J. L. 2022. ‘Distribución espacial del manatí en la planicie costera del sur del Golfo de México’. Ecosistemas y recursos agropecuarios, 9.
Pablo‐Rodríguez, N., Olivera‐Gómez, L. D., Aurioles‐Gamboa, D., & Vega‐Cendejas, M. E. (2016). Seasonal differences in the feeding habits of the Antillean manatee population (Trichechus manatus manatus) in the fluvial-lagoon systems of Tabasco, Mexico. Marine Mammal Science, 32(1).
Pérez-Garduza, F., Olivera-Gómez, L., De la Cueva, H., Hidalgo, M., and Jiménez-Domínguez, D. 2023. ‘Density and abundance estimate of Antillean manatees (Trichechus manatus) within a landlocked lake in Southeastern México’. Therya, 14: 253.
Puc-Carrasco, G., B. Morales-Vela, L.D. Olivera-Gómez, D. González-Solis. 2017. First field-based estimate of Antillean manatee abundance in San Pedro River system suggest large errors in current estimates for Mexico. Ciencias Marinas 43(4):285-299.
SEMARNAT (Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales). 2010. Norma Oficial Mexicana NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010. Protección ambiental, especies nativas de flora y fauna silvestres de México, categorías de riesgo y especificaciones para su inclusión, exclusión o cambio, y lista de especies en riesgo. Diario Oficial de la Federación, 30 de diciembre de 2010, Segunda Sección. Ciudad de México, México.
SEMARNAT (Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales). 2020. ‘Programa de Acción para la Conservación de la Especie Manatí de las Antillas (Trichechus manatus manatus)’. SEMARNAT/CONANP, México.
Serrano, A., García-Jiménez, A., and González-Gándara, C. 2007. Has the manatee (Trichechus manatus) disappeared from the northern coast of the State of Veracruz, Mexico? Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals, 6:109-112. DOI:10.5597/lajam00115
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