Monitoring and Conservation of Palo Fierro, Mezquite and Mangroves populations in Comcaac Territory, Sonora, Mexico
MAYRA OLIVIA ESTRELLA ASTORGA, Laura Monti, Carmen Gabriela Suarez Gracida, Lourdes Karelia Perales Hoeffer
Disciplines: Conservation, Natural Resources Management
Region: Seri, Gulf of California
Chapter: Hermosillo
Several species of marine species that have traditionally been used by the Comcaac community are distributed throughout Comcaac territory. However, these species have been exposed to exploitation by people outside the community, who commonly extract them illegally or inadequately. For this reason, community members that work actively in conservation issues detected the need to collect data to know the currentstatus of the most important plants in the Comcaac Nation, such as palo fierro (Olneya tesota) and mezquite (Propopis spp.) that are used by both community members and outsiders, as well as the mangrove forest of the Sargent Estuary, which is being used as firewood by fisherman’s outside community and disregarding its affectation due to other factors, such as sea level rise. Based on the collected information, the level impact on terrestrial and marine habitats can be assessed by comparing them with other studies in the Sonoran Desert and estuaries in the Gulf of California, as well as determining protection and surveillance measures which the community must apply for their protection. Furthermore, it will promote the conservation and maintenance of the cultural link between generations, starting with the elaboration of an outreach magazine for the commmunty in Spanish and Cmique iitom laguage, which will contain ecological and culture information on plant species.
