By Monika Maeckle
I made myself a rule several years ago to stop running blindly after butterflies with my net. Too often I had done so, often in the Llano River, chasing Monarchs in the fall when they return to Mexico. Sometimes I would trip on a rock, slip on wet limestone and narrowly avert catastrophe in the middle of nowhere with the closest hospital hours away. Continue reading A Butterfly Bonanza and Blue Morphos to be found in Huatulco
By Julie Etra
Magueys are monocots in the sub-family Agavoideae, previously classified in the family Agavaceae. Agave comes from the Greek word Agavo, which means magnificent, noble, admirable and was called the tree of miracles by the conquistadores. Other common names are sosquil, pita, cabuya, fique, mescal, toba (in Zapotec) and ki (Mayan). One of the 9 bays of Huatulco is named for this plant. They are abundant in the Mexican landscape and form a dominant portion of the vegetation in many parts of Mexico, especially in semi-arid regions. Distribution is from the Canadian-US border to Bolivia, including the Caribbean. The greatest diversity is in Mexico, home to 76% of the world’s population or 157 species of which 71% (111) are endemic, meaning they occur no where else. Fifty-two species occur in the state of Oaxaca. The origin of this group of plants dates to the Miocene or about 15 million years ago. They flower only once, after about 10-12 tears and also reproduce vegetatively which is how they are generally cultivated. They have lifespan of about 25years and are pollinated by bats and hummingbirds. Continue reading Maguey
By Brooke Gazer
Located just past Santa Maria Huatulco is an amazing agricultural venture that borrows its name from the ancient basilica of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. There is no notable architecture at the “Hagia Sophia” of Huatulco, but the place could be described as monumental. It is the brainchild of Armando Canavati Nadeer, a man with a remarkable vision. Although this is an enormous project, Armando has broken it down into workable sections. Of the 130 hectares, 70 are currently under development; as orchards, vegetable farms, sustainable lumber farms and an ornamental flower garden. Continue reading Huatulco’s Exotic Ornamental Gardens
By Neal Erickson
Mexico has more species of tarantula than any other country in the world except Brazil. The tarantula is, however, often maligned and misunderstood. Their bite is not fatal, and barely toxic to humans if at all, and most of the species in Mexico would rather flick hairs at you than bite you if they are threatened. That’s right. Flick hairs. Continue reading Tarantulas: Nothing to Fear
By Deborah Van Hoewyk
Remember those tin noisemakers you used to twirl at New Years? Bright colors, horrible noise? When you wake up in Huatulco, don’t you just hear them all over again? That would be the call of Ortalis poliocephala, the West Mexican chachalaca—which is supposed to sound as if it’s saying its name, “cha-cha-la-ca.” You’ll have to decide on the noisemaker vs. the name. Not only is their call unmistakable, they’re very talkative. Mornings are especially good for call-and-response discussions of plans for the day. In case you missed the plans, activities are discussed at the end of the day. Continue reading The West Mexican Chachalaca—Best Known for Its “Song”
By Alvin Starkman, M.A., J.D.
It’s never really a good time of year for water in Oaxaca, even though during the rainy season the heavens certainly do open up. The summertime rains are just a teaser, intent upon making us forget what’s in store for the balance of the year and until the following May or June – severe and worsening water shortages in most of the state of Oaxaca. Continue reading Water Shortages in Oaxaca
By Marcia Chaiken and Jan Chaiken
The Rio Grande River (literally “Big River River”) was virtually the only Mexican body of water mentioned in north-of-the border public school geography text books in the 20th century. The name of the river used in Mexico, Rio Bravo, was ignored, as were the tributaries flowing from the mountains of Mexico and feeding the river. We, as young students, could trace the routes of the Rhine and other European rivers, but had the impression that Mexico was a vast arid desert fringed with ocean. Not until we were young adults did we begin to discover magical moments in and on the interior waters of Mexico. Continue reading Lakes and Rivers of Mexico: Magical Moments
By Julie Etra
Cacaluta is one of the famous nine bays of Huatulco, the third bay moving west to east, sandwiched between Chachacual to the west and Maguey to the east. Cacaluta is an Aztecan or Nahautl word, signifying place of the crow (although crows are not found in this part of Mexico, and it probably referred to vultures). The Cacaluta watershed, topographically defined, is fairly well-studied given its relatively small size of 49 sq. km. Fifty-five percent of the watershed is located in the Parque Nacional de Huatulco, which was established on July 24, 1998, with the remaining area occurring along the river outside of the Park. It is a unique watershed in that biological diversity is very high, but it is also threatened by land development, competing land uses, and competing government jurisdictions. Continue reading Cacaluta
By Brooke Gazer
Aside from Huatulco’s natural beauty, we chose to live here because of the excellent infrastructure. Water is now or will become a major issue in many parts of the world so before investing we wanted assurance that there would always be an abundant supply. FONATUR has two types of water treatment facilities: potable and recycled. Potable water is fresh water which has been treated and is piped into every property within the development. Recycled water is sewage that has been treated and is used to keep the public areas lush and green year round.
POTABLE WATER
Huatulco’s potable water comes from a series of 8 wells located several KM into the mountains near the Copalita River. On several occasions over the past couple of years Huatulco has experienced a shortage of water, especially during holidays when all homes and hotels are filled to capacity. The problem was that three wells required maintenance and the funds for this were not immediately forthcoming. As with any mechanical devise, the longer this was delayed the graver the situation became. Fortunately, this problem has been solved. Continue reading Huatulco Water Works
By Kary Vannice
The average resident of North America uses an estimated 280 liters (74 gallons) of water per day for household daily chores and consumption. Roughly a third of that is flushed down the toilet. That’s 84 liters of water a day. Almost 12 liters each time you flush. Continue reading The Scoop on Poop
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