Page 245 - The Virgin Islands

en months of the year the 30 families the oil in its blubber. They were thought to time more slowly, until it had reached the

T of the fishing cooperative “Abuloneros be extinct in 1884 until a remnant popula- new, lower carrying capacity at maybe
and Langosteros of Guadalupe Island” are tion of eight individuals was discovered 10,000–20,000 in modern times. The island

present. At the southern tip, on Melpómene on Guadalupe Island in 1892 by a Smith- had been a nature conservancy area since

Cove, there is a weather station staffed by sonian expedition, who promptly killed August 16, 1928, making it one of the old-

a detachment from the Mexican Ministry of seven of them for their collections. The est reserves in Mexico. Eradication of the

the Navy. The site is called Campamento Sur elephant seals managed to survive, and goats was long envisioned, but logistical

(“South Encampment”). Campo Bosque was were finally protected by the Mexican gov- difficulties such as island size and lack of

established as a temporary camp in 1999 in ernment in 1922. All surviving northern el- suitable spots for landing and encamping

the cypress forest in the north. The camp ephant seals share the same male ancestor. hunters and material prevented this. As of

houses members of the Cooperative Farm- G uadalupe shares the California chapar- June 2005, after many years of false starts,
ing Society “Francisco Javier Maytorena, S.C. ral and woodlands ecoregion with the the Mexican government has almost com-
of R.L.” and removes goats from the island pleted a round-up and evacuation of the

and sells them in the State of Sonora, with Channel Islands of California in the United remaining goat population and Guadalupe

permission of Secretariat of the Environment States, but the island was at one time prac- has been designated a biosphere reserve.

and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT ) and tically denuded of all plants higher than
the support of the Secretariat of the Navy. Fa few centimeters by up to 100,000 feral
rench sea captain Auguste Duhaut-Cilly
G uadalupe Island was a major destina- goats. Originally brought there in the early remarked on the tall trees on the north
tion for Russian and American fur hunt-
19th century by primarily Russian whalers of Guadalupe Island as he sailed past on

and sealers for provisions when stopping January 2, 1827. Of the large tree species

ers seeking the Guadalupe fur seal in the over, the population eventually eliminated on Guadalupe Island (Guadalupe palm, Gua-

18th and 19th centuries, until they were most vegetation; the number of goats de- dalupe cypress, island oak, and Guadalupe

nearly extinct by 1844. The northern el- clined to a few thousand. After the crash, pine), there were only old individuals left;

ephant seal was also ruthlessly hunted for the goat population once again grew, this California juniper had entirely disappeared.