The Surprising Land Fauna of Cozumel

My recent visit to Cozumel was focused mostly on the reef life: the fish, the rays, the turtles - anything that swam in the water. In addition, my trip to the tropical island included seeking out the native bird life, notably wintering warblers and resident hummingbirds. However I was pleasantly surprised to also encounter some unique land fauna, both mammal and reptile.

On my first visit to the Mexican island over a dozen years ago, I barely paid much attention to any wildlife - I hadn't yet caught the natural history bug. I recall my ship's snorkel excursion was cancelled due to strong winds and high seas. As a result I visited Paradise Beach, a resort where I spent most of my time lazing on the beach and swimming in the sea.

On my return three years later off of another cruise ship I was more interested in exploring the island in a car, checking out the many scenic beaches, and visiting San Gervasio, an ancient Mayan archeological complex. I do remember a stop at a beach on the eastern shore where turtles nested and where some of their offspring were on display in tubs of water. Whether the turtles were part of a local conservation effort or merely a tourist sideshow I couldn't say.

This time, almost ten years later, I was decidedly more interested in Cozumel's animal life and looked forward to observing it both in the sea and in the air. I was actually at the entrance gate of Punta Sur Ecological Park at the extreme southern tip of the island where I intended to snorkel when I saw a coatimundi, or coati for short. While I waited to pay the high admission price of $17 per visitor, this cousin of the raccoon crossed the road in front of my rental car. The mammal was a sub-species of the white-nosed coatimundi which ranges from Arizona to Columbia. Finding this endangered animal on Cozumel was my first big discovery of the local terrestrial wildlife.

The road to the only snorkeling spot in the preserve not only provided more sightings of the coatis but also passed salt water lagoons know for their resident crocodiles. From several raised walkways over the brackish habitat, it was easy to spot the long, menacing reptiles lazing in the mid-morning sun.

Not far away, atop a cordoned-off ancient Mayan structure known as the Caracol, was another reptile species sunning itself, the black spiny-tailed iguana. Down the road, more active individuals sauntered across the sandy parking lot at Faro Celarain, an over one century-old lighthouse.

At the end of the road was Del Cielo Beach Club and my morning snorkeling destination. While an encounter with a feisty barracuda was the highlight of my exploration in the water, a nearby land encounter with raccoons was just as noteworthy. I was hunting for hummingbirds in the foliage behind the restaurant when I stumbled on the mammals scampering near some containers and kitchen debris.

It turns out that the Cozumel raccoon is endangered and endemic to only the island. A wholly separate species from the common raccoon that most of us are familiar with across North America, it started diverging tens of thousands of years shortly after a natural land connection to the Yucatan flooded. Also called the pygmy or dwarf raccoon, it is significantly smaller than its mainland cousins.

I went back a second time to visit the raccoons in their camp, apparently well known as a couple of other tourists were admiring the critters. A local man that might have been their guide or a taxi driver offered some scraps of food which excited one raccoon enough to stand on its back legs and beg. The treats even attracted a coati.

Contemplating that both these mammals are critically endangered disturbed me greatly. While heavily developed and popular with visitors, Cozumel still appeared to me as being rich with lush native flora. Nonetheless the animals' most important habitats are being destroyed while at the same time feral house cats are introducing diseases. The raccoon's pleas for a meal from a man's hand could have equally been pleas for protection from his destructive fist.