The Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez, is one of only two maritime desert seas in the world. It is found within the Mexican region of the Sonora Desert. The Sonora Desert is located in the states of Sonora, Baja California and Sinaloa in Mexico and extends into the southern portions of the states of  Arizona and California in the United States. The Colorado River once flowed steadily into the northern delta of the Gulf of California.

This unique and biologically diverse sea is home to California sea lions, sperm whales, as well as other cetaceans, hundreds of species of fish of all colors, shapes and sizes, more than 8,000 invertebrate species as well as many other marine plants and animals. Jacques Cousteau called the Sea of Cortez "the Aquarium of the World". Unfortunately, like most of the ocean, this biologically rich region is threatened by overfishing, pollution and habitat destruction.

There are many species of marine animals that are only found in the Gulf of California. One of the world's most critically endangered marine mammals, the vaquita, is only found in this sea. Go to the next section to learn more about the Vaquita.

              For a closer view of the Gulf of California, roll mouse over image.

North American image from NASA: Blue Marble    

Gulf of California Image from NASA: Visible Earth

The Gulf of California faces the threats of overfishing, pollution and habitat degradation similar to the rest of the ocean. However, the factor that has taken the greatest toll on this sea is fishing, which is largely unregulated. Shrimp trawlers scrape the seafloor bare. The amount of bycatch can be more than twenty pounds of unintended catch for each pound of shrimp netted. Large numbers of local fishermen catch fish from their small boats, called pangas. In the past, fishing boats from Japan and other countries have entered the Sea of Cortez to take as much as they could to fill their holds before heading home. On the shore, one might find hundreds of dead sharks missing just their fins, because the fins could be sold for significantly more than the rest of the shark's bodies.  

        Barren Reef - Gulf of California video

This video can be found at SeaWatch.org.

How you Can Help Use the Southwest Seafood Watch Guide from the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

For more information on the Gulf of California, visit these websites:

The Sonoran Desert Waters Institute

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum