Isla San Pedro Martir at sunset with extensive forest of Cardon Cactus seen on the summit ridge of the island, aerial photo, Sea of Cortez, Mexico. San Pedro Martir Island and its marine life are, since 2002, part of the San Pedro Martir Biosphere Reserve, and is regarded as a natural laboratory of adaptive evolution, similar to that of the Galapagos Islands. It is home to 292 species of fauna and flora (both land-based and aquatic), with 42 species protected by Mexican law, and 30 listed on the Red List of Threatened Species. San Pedro Martir is also unique in the area for its year-round quantity of birds. The island is the only island in the area with a perpetually swirling cloud of sea birds. This is because the water around the island, has some of the most successful marine productivity in the world.
Species: Cardon cactus, Elephant cactus, Pachycereus pringlei
Location: Isla San Pedro Martir, Sonora, Mexico
Image ID: 40398
Gorgonian Polyps, Detail. Gorgonians are colonial animals that extend branches of polyps into currents that flow over the reef in order to capture passing bits of food.
Location: Isla Angel de la Guarda, Baja California, Mexico
Image ID: 40329
Black Coral on Rocky Reef, Unidentified species, Midriff Islands, Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Location: Isla San Pedro Martir, Sonora, Mexico
Image ID: 40393
Turtle Flies Over Pink Sponges Encrusting Rocky Reef alongside various species of algae and gorgonians, San Pedro Martir Island, Sea of Cortez.
Location: Isla San Pedro Martir, Sonora, Mexico
Image ID: 40416
Black Coral on Rocky Reef, Unidentified species, isla San Pedro Martir, Midriff Islands, Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Location: Isla San Pedro Martir, Sonora, Mexico
Image ID: 40426
Pacific Green Sea Turtle, Chelonia mydas, grazing on marine algae, San Pedro Martir Island, Sea of Cortez.
Location: Isla San Pedro Martir, Sonora, Mexico
Image ID: 40429