Cozumel

Cozumel

Geography
Location	Caribbean Sea
Coordinates	20°30′N 86°57′W
Administration
Mexico
Demographics
Population	73,193

Aerial view of San Miguel de Cozumel

Cozumel (Mayan: Island of the Swallows) (Kùutsmil in Modern Maya) is an island in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, opposite the Playa del Carmen, and close to the Yucatan Channel. It is one of the eight municipalities (municipios) of the state of Quintana Roo. Cozumel is a popular tourist destination renowned for its scuba diving and snorkeling. The main town on the island is San Miguel de Cozumel.

The island is about 48 km (30 miles) north-south and 16 km (10 miles) east-west, and is the largest Atlantic island of Mexico. (It is the third-largest island in Mexico, following Tiburón Island and Isla Ángel de la Guarda.) It is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the mainland, and some 60 km (36 miles) south of Cancún. The vast majority of the population of Cozumel lives in the town of San Miguel (pop. 71,401 in 2005), which is on the western shore. The rest of the island is low, flat, and densely vegetated. The island, including offshore islets, has a land area of 477.961 km² (184.54 sq mi). The municipality, which includes two small areas on the mainland enclaved within the Municipality of Solidaridad with a land area of 10.423 km² (4.024 sq mi), has a total land area of 488.384 km² (188.566 sq mi). The two areas enclaved on the mainland are Calica, near Playa del Carmen and Xcaret, and the Xel-Há Water Park, near the Xelha archaeological ruins.

History

The Maya are believed to have first settled Cozumel by the early part of the 1st millennium AD, and older Preclassic Olmec artifacts have been found on the island as well. The island was sacred to Ix Chel, the Maya Moon Goddess, and the temples here were a place of pilgrimage, especially by women desiring fertility. There are a number of ruins on the island, most from the Post-Classic period. The largest Maya ruins on the island were bulldozed to make way for an airplane runway during World War II. The ruins of San Gervasio are located approximately at the center of the island and are the largest remaining ruins.

The first Spanish visitor was Juan de Grijalva in 1518 , and in the following year Hernán Cortés came with a fleet and destroyed many Maya temples. Some 40,000 Mayans lived on the island then, but the smallpox disease devastated them, and by 1570 only 30 were left alive. In the ensuing years Cozumel was nearly deserted, just used as a hideout by pirates from time to time. In 1848, the Caste War of Yucatán resulted in resettlement by refugees escaping the tumult. A plaque at the Museo Cozumel states that Abraham Lincoln as the American President came close to purchasing the island of Cozumel as a place to send the freed slaves. The continued war in the Yucatan caused him to change his mind.

Late 20th century

Looking south towards San Miguel.

In 1959, Jacques Cousteau discovered the extent and beauty of Palancar, the coral reefs at the south of Cozumel and publicized it as one of the best places to go scuba diving in the world. Although the original airport was a World War II relic and was able to handle jet aircraft and international flights, a much larger airport was built in the late 1970s. This resulted in much greater tourism to Cozumel.

Scuba diving is still Cozumel's primary draw, mainly due to the healthy coral reef marine communities. These coral reefs are protected from the open ocean by the island's natural geography. In 1996, the government of Mexico also established the Cozumel Reefs National Marine Park, forbidding anyone from touching or removing any marine life within the park boundaries. Despite the importance of healthy reefs to Cozumel's tourist trade, a deepwater pier was built in the 1990s for cruise ships to dock, causing damage to the reefs, and it is now a regular stop on cruises in the Caribbean.

Singer Kirsty MacColl died on this island, after a tragic accident on December 18, 2000 in which she was hit by a speedboat owned by Mexican supermarket millionaire Guillermo González Nova (owner of Comercial Mexicana). The original case resulted in minor penalties for a crew hand, but the Mexican authorities have recently agreed to re-open the case due largely to the efforts of the Justice for Kirsty campaign organized by Kirsty's mother. The campaign's supporters include U2's Bono. [1]

2005 Hurricane Season

Cozumel seen through the eye of Hurricane Wilma.

The island was struck directly by two Category 4 hurricanes during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. First to arrive was Hurricane Emily in July. Despite being a powerful storm, it was the slower moving Hurricane Wilma that caused the most destruction when it hit the island in October. The usually lush rainforest was sheared off. The tops of trees disappeared and no leaves were left on the highest five feet of almost every tree. A significant amount of vegetation was ruined when salt water washed over the island. The sewers of San Miguel were also heavily damaged.

Reconstruction was swift and concerted. Even before Wilma cleared the area, the supplies needed to restore the island were already being gathered on mainland Mexico. Within weeks, the island was receiving cruise ships again, and within months, almost all infrastructure was restored to pre-Wilma conditions or better. Two of Cozumel's three cruise ship piers have reopened: International Pier in May 2006, and Punta Langosta Pier in September 2006. The Puerta Maya Pier, which took more damage, is not yet open, and may not open before 2008 [2].

More significant—and virtually impossible to repair—was the damage to the underwater marine life. As of May, 2007 divemasters on the island reported that much of the marine life has yet to come back to previous levels. This includes both the coral reefs, which suffered particularly at the shallower dive sites, and the fish that inhabit the reefs.

Culture

Looking north from the top of the Punta Sur lighthouse.

Economics

Cozumel relies solely on tourism for income - online tourist guides generally state that unless you came to the island to scuba dive or charter fish, there is little to do as the ruins and sights are limited. There are over 100 restaurants on the island and many hotels, some of which run dive operations, have large swimming pools, private docks, multiple dining facilities, and offer complete wedding and honeymoon packages.

All food and manufactured supplies are shipped onto the island.

There are two universities on the island: Universidad de Quintana Roo and Partenon. In addition to teaching English as a degree, they offer five other career options including natural resources research, tourism and commercial systems.

Government

Cozumel is part of the State of Quintana Roo (Q-Roo). The Municipality of Cozumel consists of the island of Cozumel (with its offshore islets) and small pieces of adjacent mainland enclaved within the Municipality of Solidaridad. They are Calica and the Xel-Há Water Park.

Festival of El Cedral in Cozumel

To this day a historic festival is held in the small town of El Cedral, in the south of Cozumel Island at the end of April. This annual event is said to have been started over 150 years ago by Casimiro Cárdenas.

Cárdenas was one of a group that fled to the island from the village of Saban, on the mainland, after an attack during the War of the Castes. The attackers killed many other villagers, but Cárdenas survived whilst clutching a small wooden cross.

Legend has it that Cárdenas vowed to start an annual festival wherever he settled, to honor the religious power of this crucifix. Today, the original Holy Cross Festival forms part of the wider Festival of El Cedral, which includes fairs, traditional feasts, rodeos, bullfights, music and competitions. The celebrations last about 5 days in all and are held every year at the end of April or beginning of May. [3]

Nature

Geology

Cozumel is a flat island based on limestone, resulting in a karst topography. The highest natural point on the island is less than 15 meters above sea level. The Cenotes are deep water filled sinkholes formed by water percolating through the soft limestone soil during thousands of years. Cenotes can be explored by snorkeling, swimming or diving, in which several marine species can be appreciated. In the early 1990, a group of cave explorers, brought to light what is known to this day as the 5th biggest underwater cave, in the world. Ancient inhabitants of the island also used the large holes in the rocks for shelter, particularly to escape the heat, by digging out small caves in the ground.

Biodiversity

Cozumel has a number of endemic species and subspecies of bird including:

• the Cozumel Thrasher, which is nearly, if not already, extinct.
• the Cozumel Vireo.
• the Cozumel Wren.
• the Cozumel Great Curassow, which is highly endangered.
• the Cozumel Emerald

Endemic dwarf mammals are found on the island:

• the Cozumel Island Raccoon, which is endangered.
• the Dwarf Coati, which is endangered.
• the Cozumel Fox, which is nearly, if not already, extinct.

Endemic marine life:

• the Splendid toadfish

Photo Gallery

• 
  Barracuda at Paradise Reef.
• 
  Windward shoreline at Coconuts Bar & Grill.
• 
  Swimmers at the beach.
• 
  Punta Sur lighthouse.
• 
  Sunrise over the windward shore.
• 
  Snorkelers swim with fish.
• 
  Tidal pool and reef.
• 
  Cruise ships docked at the port in San Miguel.

Panoramic view of a Cozumel sunrise.

References

• Link to tables of population data from Census of 2005 INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática
• Coleman, Michael "Cozumel rebounds from Hurricane Wilma", Marco Island Sun Times, April 9, 2007. Accessed May 4, 2005.
• Land area of islands in Mexico INEGI
• Geographical extent of Cozumel Ayuntamiento de Cozumel

External links

• Template:Dmoz
• Ayuntamiento de Cozumel Official website
• Template:Wikitravelpar
• Cozumel Parks and Museums official site for the Quintana Roo State Foundation that manages Chankanaab Park, Punta Sur, San Gervasio and the Island Museum
• [http://www.cozumel-watersports.com Attractions and Activities in Cozumel Mexico including Tours and Excursions