Page 289 - Mexico Diving From the Caribbean to Pacific Isles

Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California)

T he Gulf of California (also known as the Fuerte, Mayo, Sinaloa, Sonora, and the Yaqui. Gulf of California is a UNESCO World Heritage
Sea of Cortez) is a body of water that sep- The gulf’s surface area is about 160,000 km2 Site. Geologic evidence is widely interpreted
arates the Baja California Peninsula from the (62,000 sq mi). The Gulf is thought to be one by geologists as indicating the Gulf of Califor-
Mexican mainland. It is bordered by the states of the most diverse seas on the planet, and is nia came into being around 5.3 million years
of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, home to more than 5,000 species of micro- ago as tectonic forces rifted the Baja Califor-
and Sinaloa with a coastline of approximate- invertebrates. Baja California is one of the nia Peninsula off the North American Plate.
ly 4,000 km (2,500 mi). Rivers which flow into longest peninsulas in the world, second only
the Gulf of California include the Colorado, to the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. The