Fishermen from southern Sinaloa and migratory birds from North America have something in common: they suffer the impacts of the environmental degradation of the Huizache Caimanero lagoon system, one of the most productive in the Mexican Pacific. The pangas that used to return loaded with shrimp have been left empty and the birds that fly thousands of kilometers every year from Alaska, Canada and the United States to spend the winter in this place, have lost space for rest and food.

The drop in fish production on which some 4,000 families depend is a symptom of a larger problem. The lagoon, located between the municipalities of Mazatlán and Rosario, is losing depth, drying up and could disappear in 15 years if it is not restored.

The Huizache Caimanero has been designated a Ramsar site since 2007 because of its importance for migratory birds in Mexico. Its registration form mentions that this coastal lagoon became the most productive in the Mexican Pacific with daily catches of 5.3 tons of shrimp and a historical record of 32 tons in a single day in 1983.

The document indicates that from 1990 to 1994, an average of 1,060 tons of shrimp were fished annually, but in the following six years production fell by a third due to environmental deterioration, so that between 2000 and 2004 the average catch was only 389 tons per year.

Now there are no good seasons, only bad and regular seasons, say the fishermen. At best, the catches taken among the 26 fishing cooperatives in the area amount to 200 tons; but if they do poorly, shrimp will be so scarce that they will not be able to recover what they invested in gasoline and in the repair of their boats. Under these circumstances, there are those who prefer not to venture out and launch their nets.

“Like two or three years we haven't fished,” says Ramón Rojas Quintero, president of the Potrerillos cooperative. Above a panga, with a wooden lever, the fisherman measures the depth in the center of the lagoon, which, after the first summer rains, is less than one meter.

^{Ramón Rojas Quintero, president of the Potrerillos cooperative. Photo 1: Rafael Narval.}

On the horizon you can see water bordered by hills and crops. Like a mirror, the clouds are reflected on the surface of the lagoon, which is only altered by the passage of the motor. From that point on, Gilberto Palafox Uzeta, president of the Federation of Fishing Cooperatives “United of the Caimanero Lagoon”, agrees with Rojas Quintero. He says that in good times cooperatives were prosperous, but now, fishermen must seek employment elsewhere because the activity is no longer profitable.

“Previously this was not the case, on the contrary, cooperatives helped communities, schools, because there was a lot of product, a lot of resources, there were exports,” Palafox recalls.

On the way to the wharf of the Mataderos cooperative, you can see a group of men seated and a row of boats on land. In the midst of the shrimp harvest, flake fishing is scarce and so is work. The busiest weave networks with the help of women.

_{A fisherman from the Slaughterhouse Cooperative weaves his nets. Photo 2: Rafael Narval.}

Another thing in common

Fishermen and their families are not the only ones who suffer from low productivity, but also the migratory birds that will start arriving in August and a great diversity of fish, mammal, reptile, amphibian and invertebrate species that are less visible.

However, migratory birds are considered to be especially vulnerable because they reproduce, winter and stop at sites that have been drastically altered in the last century worldwide, as indicated in the Strategy for the Conservation of Shorebirds of the Pacific Migratory Corridor of the Americas developed by various international organizations.

This initiative highlights that 11% of the shorebird populations in this corridor have a long-term population decline, while worldwide 45% of the populations of shorebirds that reproduce in the Arctic are decreasing.

In addition, an article published in the journal Science in 2019 reports that wild birds on the American continent have decreased by about 30% since 1970 to date, which translates into the cumulative loss of almost 3 billion birds.

Both texts recognize that the presence of these species are indicators of environmental health and ecosystem integrity. It is also noted that as long as shorebirds have well-preserved lagoons, wetlands, mangroves and other habitats, there will be means of livelihood for humans, including ecosystem services. For example, there will be greater fish production, protection against floods and storms, water filtration and climate change mitigation, among others.

_{Flock of swallow ducks (Anas acuta), caught in the Huizache Caimanero lagoon system. Migratory species from Alaska, Canada and the United States. Photo: Guillermo Juan Fernández Aceves}.

That is why Cornell University, New York, was interested in incorporating the Caymanian Huizache into the conservation strategy that it has been implementing since 2018 in the coastal sites of the 14 countries that make up the Pacific Migratory Corridor, where 170 priority areas have been identified.

The procedure was done through the Ornithology Laboratory's Coastal Solutions Fellows Program, in collaboration with the David & Lucile Packard Foundation. The strategy consists of sponsoring studies by researchers who are starting their careers to identify the main threats to coastal ecosystems of importance to migratory shorebirds and propose effective solutions, in addition to establishing alliances with the public, social and private sectors for their implementation, explained Osvel Hinojosa-Huerta, director of the program.

He said that since its launch to date, 24 multidisciplinary conservation projects have been awarded in different Latin American countries, six for each year. Of these, seven correspond to coastal wetlands in Mexico, three of which are in Sinaloa, three in Baja California and one in Baja California Sur.

_{Huizache Caimanero lagoon system, located between the municipalities of Mazatlán and Rosario, Sinaloa. Photo: Rafael Narval}.

The lagoon is changing

The coastal engineering specialist, Román Canul Turriza, leads the conservation project of the Scholars Program for Coastal Solutions in Huizache Caimanero. After two years of research, he concluded that the collapse of fishing activity is the result of the serious environmental deterioration of the lagoon system and that its main problem is azolve, a product of the deforestation of dry forest and mangroves that have been replaced by cropland and aquaculture farms.

As it is devoid of natural vegetation, the soil erodes and causes an increase in the removal of sediments by the rivers and streams that flow into the lagoon, thus reducing its storage capacity, he explained. As a result of this storm, 3,000 hectares of lagoon system have already been lost.

Through satellite images from 1990 to 2020, it was detected that the rainfall rate increased 500% in the last decade, from one centimeter to five centimeters per year. Canul Turriza warned that, at that rate, the Huizache-Caimanero could disappear in 15 years.

“In 1984 there were depths of one and a half meters on average in the lagoon and now we have 60 centimeters,” he revealed.

Remote sensing tools also reveal that the mangrove forest area has been reduced by 78% and that 85% of the soil surrounding the lagoon is agricultural, where mango, tomato and agave crops stand out. In addition, the transformation of the site caused an increase of at least 5°C in the surface temperature of the water, which in turn favors its evaporation and loss of depth.

^{Land use maps from 1990 to 2020 show a reduction in mangroves, while dry forest and secondary vegetation (scrub) have been incorporated into the farmland surrounding the lagoon system. The water surface varies depending on the rainfall recorded in each period, however, the current average depth is just 60 centimeters.}

This coastal lagoon, of approximately 48,000 hectares, receives fresh water through the wetlands that communicate with the Presidio and Baluarte rivers, but its hydrodynamics were altered by the construction of a breakwater at the mouth of the Baluarte River, which traps sand, preventing the entry of water and the entry of shrimp larvae. The fishermen say that the breakwater was built almost 30 years ago, but they don't know why; all they know is that the work done with stones from the bottom of the water to form a dam has caused them harm.

The natural flow of the lagoon has also been interrupted by the use of prohibited fishing gear such as the so-called “chacuacos”, perforations enabled with nets that function as death traps for any aquatic organism.

The results of the diagnosis were presented to fishermen and authorities from all three levels of government on June 16 in the municipality of Rosario. Right there, a management plan was proposed for the productive restoration of the lagoon system, which highlights the removal of critical sites through dredging; the removal of prohibited fishing gear and the breakwater located at the mouth of the Baluarte River.

_{Espigón and Mouth of the Baluarte River, located in the municipality of Rosario, Sinaloa. Photos: Rafael Narval.}

Solutions include reforestation in the mangrove area, streams and lagoon margins; habitat conservation and bird watching as an ecotourism activity that generates additional income for fishermen and their families.

If carried out, the conservation strategy will benefit fishing communities and all forms of life present in the lagoon, wetlands, mangroves, dry jungle and marshes associated with this system, said Canul Turriza, who has the support of the Engineering Institute of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the civil association Conselva, Coasts and Communities to carry out this project.

Now that we have a proposal for a solution with scientific support and a working table, the challenge is to obtain the resources to execute the works and to articulate all the agencies and organizations that are involved in the process.

“Let them make us produce the lagoon”

Both azolve and the use of prohibited fishing gear had already been publicly denounced by anglers in previous years. In response, they obtained palliatives based on occasional dredging in the lagoon and at the mouth of the rivers.

This year, the state government dredged river mouths to let in water and shrimp larvae, so fishermen are hopeful that there will be production once the ban is lifted. When they are not supported with machinery, seasons are lost.

“You don't look at shrimp, but we have good hope because our mouths opened up in a timely manner, blessed God,” exclaimed fishing leader Gilberto Palafox Uzeta.

On the other hand, illegal fishing gear was never regulated. It was the crisis that motivated cooperative members to reach an agreement so that chacuacos should stop being used in the fishing fields Alvaro Obregón and Laguna del Caimanero, however, they are still open because no authority has gone to cover them up, he said. In this regard, the State Undersecretary of Fisheries, César Julio Saucedo Barrón, clarified that they will not be able to intervene in the lagoon with machinery until a permit is filed with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat).

^{Gilberto Palafox Uzeta. In the background, Huizache Caimanero lagoon. Photo 7: Rafael Narval.}

Fishermen recognize that pollution generated by discharges from aquaculture farms, larval laboratories, mango packers and agrochemicals used in crops damage the lagoon and reduce production.

Palafox Uzeta considered that the authorities, especially the federal ones, have tolerated these irregularities and it is they who have the power to remedy them. Another example of this is the installation of the breakwater, he said.

In different forums, cooperative leaders have stated that in order to overcome the economic adversities that the collapse in production has generated in fishing communities, they do not need temporary assistance support, but rather the restoration of the lagoon system.

“If it's a lot of expense for the government to rely on this, that, the other, well, let it no longer give us support, but it makes us produce the lagoon and from there we are not going to ask for anything, we alone will be able to move forward. Why do I want a Bienesca of 7,200 pesos per year if in the good season I can grab 100, - 200,000 pesos depending on how the production is going,” said the president of the Federation of Fishing Cooperatives “Unidos de la Laguna del Caimanero”.

_{Fishermen from the Mataderos Cooperative, Rosario, Sinaloa. Photo: Rafael Narval.}

Who will take charge?

Now that there is a comprehensive plan for the productive restoration of Huizache Caimanero, the next step is its implementation. But to achieve this, it is necessary to manage resources, for the project to be integrated into the public policies of governments and to ensure its continuity through the articulation of the academy, fishing cooperatives, authorities and public and private sector organizations. This is the work that Conselva, Costas and Communities does as part of this conservation strategy.

“This social and political support is what we consider to be the only thing that will go from being a research project to an intervention project,” said Sandra Guido Sánchez, executive director of the civil organization.

A first step in facilitating the intervention of the different authorities is the elaboration of the Territorial Ecological Planning Plan for the Municipality of Rosario, which will serve to regulate land use and productive activities for the protection of the environment, the preservation of natural resources and their sustainable use within the municipal sphere.

Sandra Guido explained that this regulation seeks to protect the lagoon system and its area of influence, including the basin that provides it with water through upstream rainwater.

For the time being, there is already an intersectoral working table and we have the support of senators and local deputies who have committed themselves to managing resources, supports and permits before the different levels of government.

“We need the Secretariat of the Navy, for example, to support us with dredging and that requires a whole process that is not common to all of us,” he added.

_{Sandra Guido Sánchez, Executive Director of Conselva. Photo: Raquel Zapien.}

Throughout this process, citizen participation will be key, which is why we want fishermen and communities to be well informed about the strategies and to take ownership of the project.

“Citizen participation is the only thing that guarantees that projects will move from one three-year period to another, from one six-year period to another. That's why it's important from the start that there be a lot of citizen participation and a lot of clarity as to what you want to achieve, why and for what,” he said.

Sandra Guido said that Conselva agreed to participate in the project because she saw interest in fishermen and because there are technically supported solutions that make it possible to rescue the Huizache Caimanero.

“We know that we are not going to be able to return to what it once was, but we can, yes, it is possible to bet that we will be able to maintain the environmental services that the system currently provides and which are extremely important,” he said.

Separately, Osvel Hinojosa-Huerta, director of the Scholars for Coastal Solutions program, recognized that for projects to achieve their mission, it is essential that they have the support of civil society and different sectors.

“They have to spend a lot of time on governance and their long-term continuity project, that's the basic principle,” he said.

The research sponsored by the Cornell University Ornithology Laboratory lasts two years. However, the development of the process must continue for 15 or 20 years with social support, without being stopped by changes of government, he said.

_{The Baluarte River provides fresh water to the lagoon system. Photo: Rafael Narval}.

The resources

In order to dredge the lagoon, as proposed in the Hydrogeomorphological Management Plan proposed through the Fellows Program for Coastal Solutions of the Ornithology Laboratory of Cornell University, it is necessary to carry out environmental impact manifestation studies that require an investment of approximately one and a half million pesos.

Local deputy Juan Carlos Patrón Rosales, president of the Fisheries Commission in the Congress of the State of Sinaloa, said that the studies could be financed with extraordinary resources resulting from a budgetary reallocation that is already being managed by the state government and that, if achieved, would be available this year. In addition, it will be sought to label resources for the project within the 2023 expenditure budget.

For her part, the Rosarense deputy Rosario Guadalupe Sarabia Soto, a member of the same commission, commented that the total cost of the restoration works is still unknown, although it has already begun to be listed with different specialized companies. Once the amount is defined, the investment will be sought to be tripartite, with the participation of all three levels of government.

In search of resources, the state Department of Fisheries recently reached out to international organizations interested in supporting detonation projects in the Gulf of California, said Undersecretary Cesar Julio Saucedo Barrón.

They're coming

While Huizache Caimanero fishermen wait for shrimp to gain size, migratory birds are on their way. Both will depend on the lagoon for their livelihood.

From August to March or April, this coastal wetland is home to between 100 and 120 species of migratory birds that share spaces with at least 100 other resident species. This diversity is possible because the lagoon system has a variety of marine and terrestrial environments in which fresh and salt water is available, said Guillermo Juan Fernández Aceves, researcher at the Bird Ecology Laboratory of the Institute of Marine Sciences and Limnology of the UNAM, Mazatlán Academic Unit.

Caption: Left: copy of Playerito Occidental (Calidris mauri). Right: flock of western playeritos in Huizache Caimanero. Photo: 17 and 11. Author: Juan Fernández Aceves.

Here, the most common migratory bird is the Western Playerito (Calidris mauri), which weighs just 25 grams and flies between 10 and 12 thousand kilometers from Alaska to northwestern Mexico, he said. Its migratory journey lasts between 30 and 60 days; during this time it flies in sections, rests, eats and regains strength.

When winter is over, they will return to the Arctic to reproduce. They will do so every year if they manage to survive the threats of climate change and destruction of their habitat, always on the same route, faithful to the same place.

This and other shorebirds spend the winter on beaches and muddy flats that are exposed when the tides go down, providing easy access to mollusks, polychaetes (marine worms) and other invertebrates that they capture with their beaks. Some species remain in our country and others descend to Central and South America, to Chile.

The specialist considered that as long as shorebirds have lagoons, wetlands and mangroves in good condition, there will also be means of livelihood for humans.

“If there are good lagoons, there will be birds and there will be shrimp; then we will have to value the lagoons, keep the water clean, respect natural habitats and have a more sustainable and orderly management,” he concluded.

This work was supported by the Marine Journalism Network (Repemar), promoted by Causa Natura with the help of the Earth Journalism Network of Internews.