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Cozumel (; ) is an island and municipality in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen. It is separated from the mainland by the Cozumel Channel and is close to the Yucatán Channel. The municipality is part of the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico.
Large parts of the island are covered with mangrove forest which has many Endemism animal species. Cozumel is a flat island based on limestone, resulting in a karst topography. The highest natural point on the island is less than above sea level. The are water-filled sinkholes formed by water percolating through the soft limestone soil for thousands of years. Eighteen deep cenotes and more than 250 shallow bodies exist on the island. Many are under dense vegetation. Jade Cavern Cozumel (Cenote Chempita) near El Cedral is often visited by tourists.
Endemic Insular dwarfism are found on the island include
Three of Cozumel are Island gigantism: Oryzomys couesi, Peromyscus leucopus, and critically endangered Reithrodontomys spectabilis, the latter of which is also endemic to the island.
Endemic marine life includes
Other native wildlife includes
Invasive species include
Scuba diving is one of Cozumel's primary attractions, mainly due to the coral reef on the western shore of Cozumel. These coral reefs are protected from the open ocean by the island's natural geography. In 1996, the government of Mexico also established the Cozumel Reefs National Marine Park, forbidding anyone from touching or removing any marine life within the park boundaries. Despite the importance of healthy reefs to Cozumel's tourist trade, a deepwater pier was built in the 1990s for cruise ships to dock, causing damage to the reefs, and it is now a regular stop on cruises in the Caribbean. Over the past few decades, coral reef health has significantly declined in Cozumel, with much lower coral cover now present than was historically recorded.
In September 2019, the Marine Park of Cozumel began to close reefs periodically for rehabilitation. They currently close a different reef every two months and the reefs are responding positively.
In the Mayan culture, all women were required to travel to the island at least once to worship Ixchel. She was the wife of Itzamna, the supreme Mayan lord of the skies of the night and of the day. The women asked Ixchel for fertility and for a joyful motherhood. Archeologists continue to unearth small dolls once sacrificed in the fertility rituals.
A number of ruins can be found on the island, most from the Post-Classic period. The largest Maya ruins on the island were near the downtown area and have now been destroyed. Hajovsky, Ric, 2011, Bases, Bulldozers and Bullshit, Today, the largest remaining ruins are at San Gervasio, located approximately at the center of the island. The first Spanish expedition to visit Cozumel was led by Juan de Grijalva in 1518.Diaz, B., 1963, The Conquest of New Spain, London: Penguin Books, In the following year, Hernán Cortés stopped by the island on his way to Veracruz. The Grijalva and Cortés expeditions were both received peacefully by the Maya of Cozumel (unlike their experiences on the mainland). Even after Cortés destroyed some of the Maya idols on Cozumel and replaced them with an image of the Virgin Mary, the native inhabitants of the island continued to help the Spanish re-supply their ships with food and water so they could continue their voyages. Gerónimo de Aguilar, a captive of the Mayans, was rescued at this time. As many as 10,000 Maya lived on the island during the early 1500s, but in 1520, infected crew members of the Pánfilo de Narváez expedition brought smallpox to the island, and by 1570, only 186 men and 172 women were left alive on Cozumel. In the ensuing years, Cozumel was often the target of attacks by pirates, and in 1650, many of the islanders were forcibly relocated to the mainland town of Xcan Boloná to avoid the buccaneers' predation. Later, in 1688, most of the rest of the island's population, as well as many of the settlements along the Quintana Roo coast, were evacuated inland to towns such as Chemax. 1848, refugees escaping the tumult of the Caste War of Yucatán settled on the island, and in 1849 the town of San Miguel de Cozumel was officially recognized by the Mexican government.Hajovsky, Ric The Yellow Guide to the Mayan Ruins of San Gervasio, Cozumel, Amazon Books, 2012, pp. 8–10
In 1861, American President Abraham Lincoln ordered his Secretary of State, William Henry Seward, to meet with the Mexican chargé d'affaires Matias Romero to explore the possibility of purchasing the island of Cozumel for the purpose of relocating freed American slaves offshore. The idea was summarily dismissed by Mexican President Benito Juarez, and Juarez is still revered by the people of Cozumel because of this action. In 1862, Lincoln did manage to establish a short-lived colony of ex-slaves on Île à Vache off the coast of Haiti.
Work on the original Cozumel airport began when the US needed a stopover to aid World War II planes. While it was able to handle jet aircraft and international flights, it was never a US military base. By 1944, it was only used for emergencies and by the Mexican military. Eventually, Transportes Aeros Mexicanos began using the airport for domestic flights. Cozumel International Airport was built in the late 1970s and expanded in 1999.
On December 18, 2000, 41-year-old British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, died while holidaying there with her sons and her boyfriend musician, James Knight, when a powerboat fatally struck her.
The island was struck directly by two Category 4 tropical cyclone during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. In July, Hurricane Emily passed just south of Cozumel, exposing the island to the storm's intense inner core. It was the larger, stronger, slower-moving Hurricane Wilma that caused the most destruction when it hit the island in October. A category 5 hurricane with winds over 150 miles per hour, Wilma's eye passed directly over Cozumel.
The storm caused some damage to the underwater marine habitat. This included the coral reefs, which suffered particularly at the shallower dive sites, and the fish that inhabit the reefs.
Trees, power lines, and cell phone towers were blown down, cars over-turned, piers washed away, windows smashed, roads collapsed, and new rivers appeared.
In addition to restaurants, hotels, and dive shops, vendors near the ports sell a variety of souvenirs and jewelry. All of these contribute greatly to the economy of Cozumel.
Other water activities include para-sailing, kitesurfing, and a tourist submarine. There are also two . The only working pearl farm in the Caribbean is located on the north edge of the island.
San Miguel de Cozumel, the main town on the island, is home to many restaurants with a variety of cuisines, along with several discothèques, bars, cinemas, and outdoor stages. The main plaza is surrounded by shops; in the middle of the plaza is a fixed stage where Cozumeleños (people of Cozumel) and tourists celebrate every Sunday evening with music and dancing. All food and manufactured supplies are shipped to the island. Water is provided by three different desalination facilities located on the island.
Legend has it that Cárdenas vowed to start an annual festival wherever he settled, to honor the religious power of this crucifix. Today, the original Holy Cross (Santa Cruz) Festival forms part of the wider Festival of El Cedral, which includes fairs, traditional feasts, rodeos, bullfights, music and competitions. The celebrations last about five days in all and are held every year at the end of April or beginning of May.
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