Marine policy

At present, the information obtained by MigraMar is used to feed into different organizations aimed at the conservation of migratory marine species in the Eastern Tropical Pacific.

Migramar provides technical advice for national and international institutions
dedicated to marine resource maragment, with the aim of establishing a common
working framework and to facilitate mutual onderstanting.

Sharks are Wildlife

Randall Arauz is leading a popular initiative that would return wildlife status to sharks in Costa Rica.

Protection for Sharks​

Sharks haven’t been considered wildlife in Costa Rica since May of 2017, when the State promulgated that they were commercial species of fish (DE 40379 MAG MINAE).
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First Bi-national Marine Protected Area

It contemplates the union of two marine protected areas, Cordillera of Coiba in Panama and the Malpelo Flora and Fauna Sanctuary in Colombia.

First binational MPA in the Region and the Largest

The Coiba - Malpelo Swimway joins two marine protected areas that cover a total area of 70,822.41 km2, following the Coiba Mountain Range and the Yurupari Mountains; submarine mountain ranges that link the Malpelo and Coiba MPAs.
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Worlds First Marine Migratory Species Hope Spot Declared

What could become one of the first bi-national marine protected areas in the world has been declared a Hope Spot by the organization Mission Blue between Cocos island and the Galapagos archipelago.

The Swimway

Known as the Cocos-Galapagos Swimway, this Hope Spot is a 120,000-kilometer migratory underwater highway that connects the National Parks of two sovereign nations – Costa Rica’s Cocos Island National Park with Ecuador’s Galapagos Marine Reserve – both of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
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Technical Support for the Galapagos Marine Reserve Expansion

MigraMar has worked in the technical report that will be delivered to the Ecuadorian authorities for the Galapagos Marine Reserve Expansion.

Organizations Make an Urgent Call for the Protection of the Archipelago

During the last 20 years, the Galapagos Marine Reserve has faced increasing fishing pressure from national and foreign fleets. Which in addition to fishing commercial species, capture juvenile size individuals and other vulnerable or threatened species such as sharks, sea turtles, manta rays, and others.
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How does Migramar work?

As a scientific network we give our technical support in two different ways

Species Protection
inside marine reserves

In the region of the Eastern Pacific there are various marine reserves which offer protection to the species that remain within their limits. The function of these reserves is vital to the conservation of endangered marine fauna and maintenance of the extraordinary value of World Heritage Sites.

Unprotected
migratory species

However, marine reserves offer insufficient protection for the conservation of these species. Their nature leads them to cover large distances and to leave the area of the reserves, leaving them open to a large number of threats.

Our colaboration so far has archived

Protection of species
  • Inclusion of the hammerhead shark and the silky shark in Appendix ll of CMS.
  • Ban on shark fishing In colombia.
  • Inclusion of the whale shark as an Endangered species on the Red List of Endangered Species, IUCN.
  • Support for National and Regional Action Plans for sharks.
  • Inclusion of manta rays and mobulas in CITES and CMS.
  • Inclusion of the hammerhead  shark and silky shark in Appendix II of CITES.
Site-based protection
  • Temporal fishing closures in the Gulf of Nicoya.
  • Declaration of the Revillagigedo Islands as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
  • Presidential decree in Panama for the protection of whale sharks.
  • Creation of No-Take Areas in open waters of the Coiba Ridge.
  • Extension of the Coco Island Marine Conservation Area.
  • Declaration of Malpelo Island as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
  • Setting up new marine zoning in the Galapagos Marine Reserve.
  • Protection of turtle nesting sites in Ecuador.

Migramar is commited to ...

  • Improve collaborative research and policy advice for the managment of transboundary marine species.
  • Use spatial information to create and expand Marine Protected Areas in the Eastern Pacific.
  • Be the prime scientific reference for the study and coservation of migratory species.