Its goal is to protect a species that is emblematic of the UABC and the state of Baja California: the bighorn sheep.
– June 28, 2021 –
At a press conference, the UABC and the UABC Foundation officially presented the “Santuario Cimarrón Project”, which aims to protect a species that is emblematic of the university and the state of Baja California: the bighorn sheep, especially the subspecies Ovis canadensis cremnobates, the largest in the Americas.
The president of the FUABC Board of Directors, Francisco Rubio Cárdenas, mentioned that their mission is to support university students with scholarships for international mobility and maintenance, as well as with connectivity and computer equipment. “However, this ‘Santuario Cimarrón Project,’ which has been around for a while, is very important for the university,” he said. He added that the bighorn sheep is emblematic of the university and all of Baja California.
The rector of the UABC, Dr. Daniel Octavio Valdez Delgadillo, explained that the bighorn sheep is the mascot that represents the university’s students, taking into account the university’s identity as a factor of institutional improvement, “because just as the bighorn sheep always seeks the top, the university seeks to achieve the highest results and quality standards of excellence.”
He pointed out that in 1990, an agreement was published in which it was established that the UABC would participate in the census work to know the population of bighorns in the state and, based on the information collected, be able to take actions and establish public policies that affect the conservation of the species. He emphasized that these activities are perfectly in line with the mandate of the UABC Organic Law, which calls for scientific research to solve state and national problems.
To explain what the Cimarrón Sanctuary consists of, there was the presence of the person who will serve as its coordinator, Mr. Reginaldo Martín Esquer Félix, who emphasized that today the efforts and work carried out for four years culminate, and the fulfillment of a longing is crystallized. long desired.
He explained that in April 2020, a consultation agreement was signed with the National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP), related to the territory of Sierra de la Asamblea, with an area of 30 thousand hectares, being one of the most recognized habitats and with the largest population of this species in the state, located within the triangle formed by the populations of San Luis Gonzaga, Cataviña and Bahía de los Ángeles in what is now the municipality of San Quintín.
The Sierra de la Asamblea is a 30,000-hectare polygon that is classified as a “protected area” within the management program of the Valle de los Cirios Wildlife Reserve, which covers 2.5 million hectares. This classification is the highest level of protection and indicates that only very low impact research and monitoring of biodiversity, conservation, environmental education and tourism activities can be carried out; hunting and various uses of resources are not allowed.
“The main idea and objective of this ‘Santuario Cimarrón Project’ is to guarantee its conservation as a species, it is currently classified ‘under special protection’, through the implementation of a series of actions in accordance with current legislation on the matter, it is not any type of exploitation will be carried out in this territory, On the contrary, it is very possible that in the future, according to the authorities, will be established breeding sites of the subspecies Ovis canadensis cremnobates, which is present only in Baja California, with the intention of repopulating the mountains of the state that require it, among other objectives that are being pursued,” said Mr. Esquer Félix. Esquer Félix.
It should be noted that the “Santuario Cimarrón Project” will be developed exclusively in the specific area of 30 thousand hectares by the UABC Foundation in collaboration with CONANP, as well as with the support and scientific assistance of the UABC.
Also present were Dr. Alberto Leopoldo Morán y Solares, director of the School of Sciences; Dr. Guillermo Romero Figueroa, researcher at the School of Sciences; engineer Federico Godínez Leal, consultant for the UABC Foundation; biologist Benito Rafael Bermúdez Almada, regional director of the Baja California Peninsula and North Pacific of CONANP.