Coiba Ridge MPA, a Marine Refuge in Panama’s Pacific Waters
Whale shark in Coiba by Candy Real
MigraMar, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), WildAid Marine, Skylight, and the Blue Nature Alliance are supporting Panama’s efforts to protect these rich waters from illegal fishing
By Hector Guzman of STRI and MigraMar, and Joaquín Labougle
Related topics:
Off Panama’s Pacific southwestern coast lies the newly expanded Cordillera de Coiba Area of Managed Resources (Área de Recursos Manejados Cordillera de Coiba) - an offshore marine protected area (MPA) designated in 2015 and expanded on June 8, 2021—World Ocean Day.
These Eastern Tropical Pacific waters serve as key habitat for many migratory fish, turtles, mammals, and as a last refuge for many threatened animals. It is also home to an incomparable array of creatures found nowhere else on Earth. The Cordillera de Coiba also features an exceptional underwater topography with a chain of volcanic mountains and seamounts that connect the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) with the Islands of Malpelo and Gorgona (Colombia), and the Cocos Island (Costa Rica) with the Island of Coiba (Panama).
Despite its rich biodiversity, data from Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission’s (IATTC) observers indicates that this fragile and vulnerable ecosystem is threatened by the international industrial fishing fleets that target tuna, especially yellowfin tuna, and have significant rates of bycatch—other species incidentally caught and killed while fishing at mass scale.
To help protect this incredible marine ecosystem, Panama tripled the area of protection around the Coiba Ridge in June 2021 and it now covers nearly 68,000 square kilometers (26,000 square miles), being two-thirds of the MPA zoned as no-take zones, or zero extraction.
The new safeguards also made Panama one of the few countries to protect at least 30% of its waters – a global target many scientists say humanity must achieve by 2030 to secure the long-term health of our planet.
In alignment with the area’s management plan, MigraMar, WildAid Marine, and Skylight—with the Blue Nature Alliance’s assistance— and the STRI are supporting Panama’s Ministry of the Environment and other national authorities to prevent the area’s principal threats—illegal fishing.
This joint effort orchestrated by the STRI and MigraMar aims to develop and implement comprehensive strategies for effective monitoring, management, and enforcement of the protected waters. This is expected to include new satellite monitoring technologies that complement existing systems, building technical expertise, and inter-institutional collaboration as well as strengthened legal frameworks, regulations, and protocols for the detection and prosecution of illicit activities.
By leading on conserving at least 30% of its waters, safeguarding the connectivity between habitats, and ensuring its protected waters are well managed, Panama is creating an effective refuge, in its Pacific waters, for threatened and endangered sea turtles, whales, sharks, and countless species of seabirds so they can flourish.