Mexico has transformed a prison island into a nature reserve

Once home to a prison, the Marias Islands – an archipelago of four islands off the coast of the Mexican state of Nayarit – are opening to visitors in July. The four islands are made up of the islet of San Juanito, Maria Cleofas, Maria Magdalena and Maria Madre, which is the largest and the only one that’s inhabited.

Sitting 97km off the coast, the isolated archipelago has benefitted from a lack of human interference which has promoted its biological diversity. The group were declared a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 2010.

Between 1905 and 2019, María Madre was home to Islas Marías Federal Penal Colony, which has since been renovated into The Centre for Environmental and Cultural Education. The centre aims to promote understanding and the protection of biodiversity in Mexico.

Sustainable tourism activities include bird watching and hiking around the islands’ mountains and forests. Look out for blue-footed boobies, blue mockingbirds and broad-billed hummingbirds, as well as migratory species such as the hook-billed kite, Caspian tern and blue-winged teal. The islands are also home to the tres Marias Amazon parrot, which isn’t found anywhere else in the world.

As well as whale watching expeditions, visitors can snorkel around the islands’ coral reefs and see mollusks, 10 varieties of rays and more than 21 shark species. Surfers meanwhile can surf off Hammerhead beach on Maria Cleofas or off San Juanito, which has one of Latin America’s longest waves.