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Sand Dunes - Amazing Structures Providing Shelter & Food |
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Cozumel is known for its miles and miles of pristine beaches and coastal areas. And all along the island's shoreline there are sand dunes piled up behind these beautiful beaches. As visitors walk along the water's edge and dig their toes into the soft sand, few realize that the health and beauty of the beaches are heavily dependent on the sand dunes just behind them. As more and more research is done on coastal eco-systems, scientists are now beginning to make us fully aware of the critically important role that sand dunes play in our global, coastal eco-systems.
Sand dunes provide a wide range of habitats for a variety of unusual, interesting and adaptive plants that can cope with unstable habitats. Sand dunes form in relatively exposed locations. All over a dune, very specialized plants adapt to the accumulation of sand around them surviving the continual burial of their shoots by sending up very rapid vertical growth. With the help of these plant shoots, small mounds of vegetation and/or tide-washed debris can form and tend to enlarge as the wind-speed drops behind the mound, allowing blowing sand to fall out of the air stream and accumulate which constantly increases the size of a dune. The plants are physiologically adapted to withstand the problems of high salt contents in the air and soil. Sand dunes support a wide variety of colorful flowering plants, including a number of species of orchid.
On the inland side of dunes conditions are less severe, and typical grasslands develop containing a wide range of plant life. When enough humus has accumulated within the grassland sand, this more stabilized soil improves water retention and promotes further plant diversity development. Consequently, sand dune systems are excellent places for biodiversity, partly because they are not very productive for agriculture, and partly because these unstable and stable soil habitats are present in proximity to each other. Many dune areas are protected as nature reserves, and some are parts of larger conservation areas incorporating other coastal co-existing habitats like salt marshes, mud flats, grasslands, scrub and woodland.
All coastal dune ecosystems also support a population of animal species in addition to plant life. Since most animal life requires basic survival elements such as shelter, food and water, it stands to reason that species density in any one area would be dependent on their availability. Small birds, reptiles, crustaceans, and other coastal species commonly call the coastal dunes their home. As the dune system moves from the fore dunes toward the back dunes, with their increased vegetation, the ecosystem becomes more complex, supporting a larger amount of species. Sand dune systems are also very rich in invertebrates including butterflies, moths and burrowing bees and wasps.
The beach is a margin of sand in a dynamic ebb and flow controlled by tides, winds, currents and waves. The critical factor is the presence of a sufficiently large beach plain whose surface dries out between high tides. Off shore shallow sand banks release the initial energy from ocean swells as they break and send secondary waves with low residual energy gently up and down the beach. The dissipative beaches are wide, gently sloping, slow draining and quite firm underfoot because the fine sand particles fit close together. These beaches support a relatively high variety of burrowing organisms. Because of their shallow gradients, these beaches also act as traps for another group of organisms called diatoms. Diatoms survive between sand grains and provide the chief food for bi-valves and other filter feeders.
Recreation is a major land use on sand dune areas. Many dune systems are used extensively by tourists, mostly on foot but also for parking cars and in some cases for driving four-wheel-drive vehicles or motorcycles. Moderate pressure by pedestrians may cause little damage, however, excessive pedestrian use and vehicular use in particular, have caused unacceptable erosion on many dune sites.
Many dune systems also support one or more golf courses. Here much of the original vegetation may be retained in the rough, but the communities of the fairways, and particularly the greens and tees, are often severely modified by mowing, fertilizing and re-seeding. Sand dunes have also been affected in the past by housing developments, industrial development, and waste collection areas on or adjacent to them as well as sand extraction.
What can you do to help protect and conserve Cozumel's sand dunes? |
If you live part time or full time or vacation on the island:
Sign up & participate in ongoing beach cleanup efforts in Cozumel.
Keep your visits to the beaches "green" by not discarding trash. Leave the beach pristine. If you want to go beyond being an environmentally conscious visitor, there are a number of ways you can become proactive in the protection of our sand dunes. Pick up trash as you walk along the shore, and recycle or dispose of it properly. Encourage better behavior by other users; point out regulations and the reasons for them. Report any serious violation you see to the proper authorities.
If you must cross the dune, pick your way between the plants and avoid already-eroded trails and steep approaches. If there is more than one person, select spots where the dune is shallow and spread out; return to the beach by a different route.
Do not build fires on the beach. While dried driftwood makes great campfires, this and other natural debris washed up by the lake help trap sand, and are the only source of nutrients available for plant growth on the dunes. Also, beach campfires leave unsightly scars and pose a fire threat to surrounding vegetation in this dry habitat.
Do not ride all-terrain vehicles on the beach.
Do not disturb water birds, migrating shorebirds, and nesting shorebirds. They are extremely intolerant of visitors and are easily denied nesting habitat by the very presence of recreational beach/dune users.
If you are a golfer, encourage golf course management policies and practices that are sympathetic to the flora and fauna of sand dune systems.
Support legislation for sound management of the world's coastal areas with your government.
Maintaining sandunes is essentional for Cozumel's future.
Thank you for doing your part to protect and conserve Cozumel's sandunes.
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Some Great Ways to Get Close to Nature!
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Cozumel Butterfly Sanctuary Tour & PalMar Snorkel Beach Club |
Visit Cozumel's only Butterfly Sanctuary! Merged in 2018 with the Cozumel Butterflies & Botanical Gardens, see multitudes of colors, learn about butterfly habits and the miracle of metamorphosis. Take photos and then stay to enjoy snorkeling and the other ammenities of the PalMar Snorkel Beach Club. Great family fun & excellent value!
Starting at US $8.00!
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Cozumel - Punta Sur Ecopark, Lighthouse & Snorkeling |
Cozumel's largest natural eco-park featuring a lighthouse to climb, Mayan ruins to see, coves to snorkel, a nautical museum, sea turtle nesting areas, a crocodile sanctuary, an enormous mangrove lagoon where spoonbill flamingos nest and white egrets go hunting daily along with a multitude of other animal species that call the park home. Experience Cozumel's wildlife up close and personal during this unique tour excursion activity!
US $125 Adults / US $115 Kids
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PalMar Snorkel Beach Club & Patas y Alas Butterfly Sanctuary |
Bring your group and spend the day at our PalMar small, private beach facility and enjoy a day of snorkeling at Cozumel's premier beach entry snorkel spot! No crowds here and gates close daily with a maximum of 50 people on site! Plus Patas & Atlas Butterfly Sanctuary which, in 2018, merged with Cozumel Butterflies & Botanical Gardens is now included when open (seasonal)!
US $19 Adults / US $8 Kids - Includes FREE Drinks!
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Best Little Hideaway - We were there on April 15th of this year. What a wonderful little find in the business of the other beach resorts that are full of cruise ships folks. We had the place almost to ourselves. The grounds were wonderful, the pool clean and inviting, the snorkeling was GREAT and the wait staff were so accommodating and gracious. Got to meet the owner and told her how wonderful it was for her to open her home and make it an oasis for us to enjoy. We wanted a more peaceful place without all the people. Great drinks, and great snacks. Spent the whole day there and glad we did. Josie & David B. - April 2016 ~ Cottage Grove, MN USA
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I considered your advice to drop by & remembered reading that most public beaches get really crowded if there are a lot of cruise ships in port. There were 7 ships in Cozumel on Saturday & I was prepared, got off the ship first thing at 9 with husband and snorkel gear in tow & inquired about taxi rates. I was a little apprehensive when the taxi organizer didn't know where Palmar was but I had your directions & coupon printed out so I told them it was between the two hotels and mentioned the beach name & all was well. I then realized it was a blessing for them not to know where I was going - that had to mean it wouldn't be too popular/crowded!
I believe we met your husband Mauricio? He was very nice and made us feel very comfortable, showed us to a locker and we were off across the street. A bit hard to get in the water with all the rocks (this is what makes the water so clear!) but it was beautiful & shallow snorkeling with lots of neat corral - and 2 different 2 ft. barracudas guarded the shore. When we came back we ordered guacamole and chips as well as a mango and pina colada daiquiri. It was obvious it was all just prepared and really fresh - best guacamole I've ever had, the chips were fresh, and the shakes were delicious. In summary, your location was beautiful, thank you for opening your home as a beach club so we could get away from the crowds, we felt so special! Mauricio was as good a host as he was a chef! We'll definitely be recommending Palmar! G. Nielsen ~ Cruise Passenger
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Most relaxing day out of 8 on the island was at PalMar Beach Club! Snorkeling was awesome, staff was great, and we enjoyed meeting the owners! B. Wright/L. Miller - Apr 2017 ~ Allen, TX USA
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My son and I decided to avoid the cruise ship excursions for snorkeling and try Pal Mar Estate Beach Club. I read a number of reviews and figured it was worth a shot. We have gone on 4 cruises now and always done the cruise line sponsored excursions and without a hesitation this is by far the best thing we have done. Pal Mar was nice, clean, very quiet and the staff was beyond awesome. One of the most relaxing times we have had. The Pico de Gallo was fresh and hand made and fantastic....my son wont touch tomatoes and such and he ate it all up...wonderful! The snorkeling was a lot of fun and we saw tons of fish, starfish, coral, etc. and even a Moray eel. Very cool and spooky too to be honest. We had a blast and would do it again in a heartbeat. With cab fare both ways, Pal Mar admission, 4 beers for me and two sodas for my son along with chips and Pico we spent only 65$. We snorkeled for almost 4 hours....exhausted but a blast! We must have seen at least 8 excursion trips come through the area we were at and they are there maybe 45 min to an hour and gone. It would have cost us 3 times what we paid to do the ship excursion and we got to relax and snorkel all day. Can't recommend it enough and we will definitely be back when our next cruise stops in Cozumel. Thank you so much for your hospitality!! M. Schomaker-Feb. 2015 ~ Elk River, MN USA
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Our day at PalMar was perfect! We hope to visit again. J. Goodell - February 2017 ~ Lake Park, IA USA
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