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Sierra Gorda
	Sierra Gorda
	IUCN Category Ia (Strict Nature Reserve)
	; Waterfall in the Sierra Gorda, 2007
	Location of Sierra Gorda Natural Reserve within Mexico
Location	Queretaro, Mexico
Nearest city	Jalpan de Serra
Coordinates	21°20′0″N 99°40′0″W / 21.333333°N 99.666667°WCoordinates: 21°20′0″N 99°40′0″W / 21.333333°N 99.666667°W
Area	383,567 hectares
Established	May 19th, 1997
Governing body	National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP), Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT).
	Official website

For the commune of Chile, see Sierra Gorda, Chile.

Comprising the northeast third of Querétaro state in Mexico, the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve covers 383,567 hectares (947,810 acres) of a rugged arm of the Sierra Madre Oriental. The Sierra Gorda is home to five Franciscan missions declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve was created by presidential decrete on may 19th, 1997. It's under management of the Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas CONANP of Mexico's Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT).

The reserve begins in the dry Mexican Plateau before rising to 3,100 metres (10,000 ft) along the high ridges of Pinal de Amoles, where vistas across deep valleys allows one to see many of the 15 vegetative types that make it the most ecosystem diverse reserve in Mexico. The reserve encompasses extensive tracts of well-conserved wilderness including old growth moist montane forests covered in bromeliads and orchids, high elevation pine-oak forests with plunging waterfalls and crystal clear blue rivers, semi-deserts where a great diversity of cactus and Wild Oregano bloom, and lowland tropical forests where Jaguars, ancient Cycads and Trogons make their home. There are also numerous sótanos, vertical caves up to 600 metres (2,000 ft) deep, where flocks of macaws and swallows find refuge and can be seen circling at dawn.^[1]

Franciscan Mission in the Sierra Gorda, 2004.

Unlike most protected areas, the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve is 70% privately owned, 27% ejido, 3% federal property. Nearly 100,000 people live within the reserve, mostly scattered in small mountain villages, and the conservation of these rare intact forests relies on their willing participation. Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda, the local NGO which co-manages the reserve with the federal government, plays a critical role by organizing and engaging local communities in sustainable livelihoods including beekeeping, embroidery, and ceramics, as well as genuine community-owned and operated ecotourism projects that include cabins, camping areas, local cuisine and guides. Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda is the 1000th member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The region is formed by the municipalities of Arroyo Seco, Jalpan de Serra, Landa de Matamoros, Pinal de Amoles, and Peñamiller. It comprises about 32% of the state of Querétaro's area. It has 683 communities with about 100,000 inhabitants.^[2]^[3]

[edit] References

^ Lenth, Buffy; Ben Lenth (2008). Mexico. Lonely Planet. p. 651. ISBN 9781741048049.
^ Bayon, Ricardo; Amanda Hawn, Katherine Hamilton (2007). Voluntary carbon markets: an international business guide to what they are and how they work. Earthscan. pp. 71-74. ISBN 184407417X, 9781844074174.
^ Ruiz Corzo, Martha Isabel Pati (2004). "Chapter 17: Education and communication for conservation: co-management of the Sierra Gorda Reserve, Mexico". in Hamú, Denise; Auchincloss, Elisabeth; Goldstein, Wendy. Communicating protected areas. IUCN. pp. 155-162. ISBN 2831708222, 9782831708225.

[edit] External links

http://www.sierragorda.net

Photos galleries of the missions:

[0] Lenth, Buffy; Ben Lenth (2008). Mexico. Lonely Planet. p. 651. ISBN 9781741048049.

[1] Bayon, Ricardo; Amanda Hawn, Katherine Hamilton (2007). Voluntary carbon markets: an international business guide to what they are and how they work. Earthscan. pp. 71-74. ISBN 184407417X, 9781844074174.

[2] Ruiz Corzo, Martha Isabel Pati (2004). "Chapter 17: Education and communication for conservation: co-management of the Sierra Gorda Reserve, Mexico". in Hamú, Denise; Auchincloss, Elisabeth; Goldstein, Wendy. Communicating protected areas. IUCN. pp. 155-162. ISBN 2831708222, 9782831708225.

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