"Sea of Cortez" redirects here. For the book by John Steinbeck, see The Log from the Sea of Cortez. John Steinbeck III (February 27 1902—December 20 1968 was one of the best-known and most widely read American writers of the 20th century The Log from the Sea of Cortez is a book written by John Steinbeck, published in 1951 which details a six-week marine specimen-collecting boat expedition he

The Gulf of California (highlighted)

The Gulf of California (also known as the Sea of Cortez or Sea of Cortés; locally known in the Spanish language as Mar de Cortés or Mar Bermejo or Golfo de California) is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland. The Baja California peninsula ( English: Lower California peninsula) is a Peninsula in western Mexico. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. It is bordered by the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, and Sinaloa. Baja California (pronounced ˈbɑːhɑː kælɨˈfɔrnjə in English is the northernmost state of Mexico. Baja California Sur (pron BAH-hah kahl'-ee-FORE-nyah SOOR is one of the 31 States of Mexico. Sonora is one of the 31 federal states of Mexico and is located in the northwest of the country Sinaloa is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Geography Sinaloa is bordered to the north by Sonora and Chihuahua; to the south The name "Gulf of California" predominates on most maps in English today. The name "Sea of Cortés" is the one preferred by most local residents. The Gulf opened up 5. 3 million years ago, redirecting the flow of the Colorado River. The Colorado River (' Aha Kwahwat in Mojave) is a River in the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately Other rivers which also flow into the Gulf of California include the Fuerte, Mayo, Sinaloa, Sonora, and the Yaqui. The Fuerte River is a river in the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa. The Mayo River is located in the Mexican state of Sonora. There is an important dam named Adolfo Ruiz Cortines after one of the Presidents of Mexico Its surface area is about 160,000 km² (62,000 square miles). Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of

Contents 1 Geology 2 Fishery 3 Islands 3.1 Bathymetry 4 References 5 External links

Geology

The Gulf of California came into being as tectonic forces rifted the Baja California Peninsula off of the North American Plate about 12 million years ago. Plate tectonics (from Greek τέκτων tektōn "builder" or "mason" describes the large scale motions of Earth 's Lithosphere The Baja California peninsula ( English: Lower California peninsula) is a Peninsula in western Mexico. The North American Plate is a Tectonic plate covering most of North America, Greenland and part of Siberia. As part of this process, the East Pacific Rise propagated up the middle of the Gulf along the seabottom. The East Pacific Rise is a Mid-oceanic ridge, a divergent tectonic plate boundary located along the floor of the Pacific Ocean. The Gulf would extend as far as Indio, California except for the tremendous delta created by the Colorado River. Indio California, is a US city located in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Desert region This delta blocks the sea from flooding the Mexicali and Imperial Valleys. Mexicali, is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. The Imperial Valley is a region of southeastern California ( USA) located in part between the Colorado River and the Salton Sea, which Volcanism dominates the East Pacific Rise. The island of Isla Tortuga is one example of this ongoing volcanic activity. Isla Tortuga is an island in the Gulf of California, created relatively recently in geologic terms by the volcanism associated with the East Pacific Rise. ^[1]

Fishery

The narrow sea is home to a unique and rich ecosystem. In addition to a wide range of endemic creatures, it hosts many migratory species, such as the humpback whale, California Gray Whale, manta ray and Leatherback Sea Turtle. Endemism is the Ecological state of being unique to a place Endemic species are not naturally found elsewhere The humpback whale ( Megaptera novaeangliae) is a Baleen Whale. The Gray Whale or Grey Whale ( Eschrichtius robustus) is a Whale that travels between feeding and breeding grounds yearly The manta ray ( Manta birostris) is the largest of the rays, with the largest known specimen having been more than 7 The leatherback turtle ( Dermochelys coriacea) is the largest of all living turtles This region has historically been a magnet for world class sport fishing activities, with a rich history of sporting world records. For the computer security term see Phishing. Fishing is the activity of catching Fish.

The region also has a rich history as a commercial fishery. For the fishing industry and the practice of fishing see Fishing. Some authors have reported witnessing tuna schools more than 100 miles (160 km) long in this region. Tuna, are several Species of ocean-dwelling Fish in the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. Some argue that this region is one of the few in the world that still has potential to open new commercial fisheries, because statistics show that the fishing resources are stable. But the data varies wildly according to the species being studied, and the Gulf's ability to recuperate after years of over fishing remains uncertain. Moreover, changes in terrestrial ecology, such as the vast reduction in flow from the Colorado River into the Gulf, have negatively affected fisheries, particularly in the northern region.

The Gulf of California sustains a large number of marine mammals, many of which are rare and endangered. Its more than 900 islands are important nesting sites for thousands of seabirds and its waters are a primary breeding, feeding, and nursing grounds for a myriad of migratory and resident fish species. For decades, the gulf has been a primary source of two of Mexico's leading marine resources, sardines and anchovies. Water pollution is a problem in the Gulf of California, but the more immediate concerns are overfishing and bottom trawling, which destroys eelgrass beds and shellfish.

Efforts by the Mexican government to create conservation zones have been hampered by lack of enforcement resources as well as a lack of a political consensus on this issue of conservation of the Gulf. Conservation can be confused with Conversation and vice versa The thousands of miles of coastline are remote and difficult to police, and the politically powerful commercial fishing industry has been slow to embrace even economically viable conservation measures, much less stricter measures of conservation. Conservation of the Gulf's fisheries and coastlines is also complicated by a long history of over-capitalization in the sector, and the direct, often negative impacts that conservation measures have on the livelihoods of Mexico's coastal inhabitants. At present, the Mexican government and business interests have promoted a macro-level, tourist development vision for the Gulf, whose impacts on ecology and society there are uncertain.

Coastal communities that are highly reliant on the sport fishing industry include San Felipe, San Carlos, Sonora, Cabo San Lucas, La Paz, Loreto, Guaymas, and Mulegé. San Felipe is a town on the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez in the Mexican state of Baja California, 190 km south of the United States border San Carlos is a Beachfront subdivision within the port city of Guaymas, in the northern state of Sonora in Mexico. Cabo San Lucas (popularly known as just 'Los Cabos' - along with San José del Cabo - in Mexico and 'Cabo' in the United States) is a City at the southern tip La Paz (Spanish for "The Peace" is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California For other uses see Loreto. Loreto (or Conchó) was the first Spanish settlement on the Baja California Peninsula Guaymas (formally Heroico Puerto Guaymas de Zaragoza) is a port city and a municipality in the Mexican state of Sonora. Mulegé is a town in the municipality of Mulegé in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur, situated at the mouth of the Río Santa Rosalía Mazatlán, on the Mexican mainland's Pacific coast, depends on the sagging commercial fishery. Mazatlán ( IPA: zat ˈlan is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding Municipio (municipality for which

Islands

The Gulf of California contains two large islands, the Isla Ángel de la Guarda and Tiburón Island, as well as several smaller ones, including Isla Espiritu Santo and Isla Partida which is joined to it by a narrow isthmus. Isla Ángel de la Guarda, also called Archangel Island, and called Xazl Iimt /ˌχaʃɬ ˈiːmt/ 'homes of the pumas' in the Seri language, ( is a large Tiburón Island ( Spanish: Isla del Tiburón or Isla Tiburón; Seri: Tahéjöc (/taˈʔɛxʷk/ is both the largest Isla Espíritu Santo (meaning Holy Spirit Island in Spanish is an island in the Gulf of California, off the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. Isla Partida is connected to Isla Espíritu Santo by a narrow isthmus The beach at Ensenada Grande, on Isla Partida, was named the most beautiful beach in Mexico and one of the most beautiful in the world by British publication, The Travel Magazine.

Bathymetry

Depth soundings in the gulf have ranged from fording depth at the estuary near Yuma, Arizona to in excess of 3000 m in the deepest parts. Yuma is a city in and the County seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. [1]

References

External links

• Wild Studies Baja Marine Extreme Educational Programs
• Sea of Cortez Expedition and Education Project
• Sea of Cortez Marine Life
• Desert Museum
• Sea of Cortez Sailing

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