How can I help?
Ilustración : Daniel Irizarri Oquendo
- Las areas marinas protegidas protegen una gran biodiversidad de organismos -conserva el valor ecologico y cultural de estos espacios - apoyan la produccion sostenible de recursos marinos.
-Cuando estés realizando "snorkeling", buceando o nadando, disfruta de los paisajes del ecosistema sin tocar los corales del arrecife ni sus organismos asociados. -Mantén tus chapaletas y equipo asegurado sin tocar el fondo o arrecife de coral. -No levantes sedimentos o arena del fondo, ya que aumenta la turbidez y disminuye la posibilidad del coral de realizar fotosíntesis y obtener luz para la producción de energía.
- Conoce los mariscos que ordenas en los restaurantes - Come mariscos de forma sostenible, conociendo las temporadas de reproducción y vedas de las especies protegidas -Promueve la pesca del pez león
- Colabora como voluntario en proyectos de conservación como limpiezas de playa, rehabilitación de ecosistemas marinos, monitoreo de arrecifes de coral, remoción de especies invasoras, entre otros. -Conoce las organizaciones ambientales sin fines de lucro que laboran en su comunidad -Haz la diferencia
-Conviértete en un agente de cambio socioambiental - Comparte tus conocimientos con su familia y miembros de su comunidad - Informa sobre la importancia de los arrecifes de coral para su comunidad costera
- Usa menos plastic, ya que la gran mayoria de estos terminan en los oceanos - Disminuye la basura que generas y reusa - Dispone correctamente de los materiales reciclables - Recoge tus desperdicios sólidos cuando visites las playas, como también los desperdicios del prójimo
-Cuando vallas a tirar ancla, recuerda verificar donde la instalas -Asegurarse no estar en zona de hierbas marinas o arrecifes de coral cuando vallas a tirar el ancla
To conserve the biodiversity of the Luis Peña Canal there are several things you can do:
When you visit the Nature Reserve, enjoy the underwater and terrestrial landscapes responsibly .
If you visit the Natural Reserve with a private boat, be careful when approaching Cayo Luis Peña or the beaches. The underwater spaces around Culebra are critical federal habitat for whitefish or green turtles. In addition, manatees have been sighted in the area. Remember to navigate slowly so as not to impact these endangered species that frequent the area.
Remember, you know the route you are going to navigate before leaving in your boat, as well as identifying the mooring buoys available at your destination. The Reserve has several mooring buoys installed by the Department of Natural Resources for public use and to avoid the impact of the anchor. If you are going to anchor, use demarcated areas for anchoring and make sure to anchor in a sandy area. It is prohibited to anchor in coral reefs or marine grasses under Law No. 147 of 1999 since they are ecologically important ecosystems and would cause a significant impact on it, rapidly fragmenting a coral or marine grass that took so long to grow and degrading the habitat of many other organisms that use the ecosystem for protection, shelter and / or food.
When you go to do "snorkeling" or free diving, know where to enter the water and where to exit, to avoid stepping on and fragmenting coral in the flat area. In the Nature Reserve, most of the beaches have corals very close to the shore of the beach, among them, corals in danger of extinction such as the Elk Horn coral.
Observe the underwater landscapes from a safe distance for you and the ecosystem. Remember, these ecosystems are extremely sensitive, as are the organisms they harbor. Do not touch the organisms associated with the coral reef or marine grasses, such as corals, sea turtles, conch, octopus, among others. They are sensitive and fragile organisms.
When you are swimming and you have to rest, remember to be aware of the bottom so as not to step on or 'splash' the coral reef. Move and swim horizontally so as not to lift the sand from the bottom. If sediments are raised, they will remain suspended, and will eventually be deposited on top of the reef, which will impact the photosynthesis capacity of coral and seagrasses, as well as the visibility and quality of your experience.
Admire and enjoy the diversity of forms that the Reserve houses in its natural habitat. Leave the coral skeletons, snail shells and sponge scraps on the beach. Don't take them as "souvenirs". Much less if the coral has color (it is alive); These make up the home for many other living organisms in the ecosystem. Also, skeletons and shells, in part, eventually form our beautiful beaches and sand dunes. In the Nature Reserve it is forbidden to take corals, both alive and dead, since it is a non-extraction zone in general and corals are protected by Law No. 147 of 1999.
Reduce the amount of garbage and make sure you take all the garbage generated during your visit to the Nature Reserve. As much as possible, recycle. Everything we leave or even deposit in the Culebra landfill eventually reaches the ocean. Sea turtles end up mistaking plastic bags for food, eventually causing their death.
In addition, know and learn about the marine biodiversity of the Reserve, as well as its history, cultural value and regulations.
-Know the delimitation of the Reserve.
-Know the history of the Reserve and who Luis Peña was.
-Know the regulations of the Reserve and respect the no-fishing zones
It -Meet species of coral and fish in danger of extinction or n the Reserve hosts.
-Educate those who do not know about the importance of the Reserve and how to behave when visiting it.
-Participate in the educational workshops offered in the Reserve, either helping in schools or being part of the public.
- Do not feed or disturb the sea turtles.
