Amortajada Lagoon’s Wild Kingdom

 

 




Pretty Bay of Amortajada

We departed Bahia Candeleros at 9am, rounding San Marcial Point in calm seas.  After six hours of motoring we reached the island of San Jose and anchored in Bahia Amortajada in front of the bay’s large lagoon.  The following morning we ventured through the mangroves and into the lagoon but only after covering ourselves with Cutter’s insect repellant! 


Anchorage in front of The Lagoon, Isla San Francisco in distance 

As the local saying goes, wherever you find mangroves, you’ll find jejenes (pronounced hay-hay-nays)!  These tiny insects are less than 1/16 of an inch long and look like little black dots on your skin but have a ferocious bite!  Called no-see-ums or midgies in the United States and Canada, these biting flies spit a protein into its prey as it bites, leaving a stinging, itchy burn that’s several times more itchy than a mosquito’s bite and lasts longer.  One out of four people produce an antibody to this protein which causes large red welts to appear on the skin and most everyone finds it difficult not to scratch at the stinging, irritating bites. 



Entering the Mangroves

Unlike the mosquito’s bite that’s felt after its done feeding, the jejen’s attack is detected at the onset and can be swatted away.  Jejenes don’t actually feed on blood, they feed on flower nectar; the females however require the protein in blood for their eggs to mature.  Yes, it’s only the females that bite, primarily around dawn and dusk; I guess they get cranky that time of day.  

As we motored over the sandbar and into the mangroves, these gals seemed quite determined to find a piece of our skin not covered in repellent.  Fortunately wind is an enemy of the jejenes, even a breath of wind can send them careening out of control.  

Speeding Through the Channel

After reaching deeper water, we were able to speed through the mangroves, free of the jejenes.  We soon reached the end of the channel and entered the large lagoon with views of Isla San Francisco in the distance.  

Clear Water and Lush Green Mangroves

Wild life in the lagoon included a handsome looking species of Heron and several species of fish.  The shallow lagoon can be entered from either direction, but not wanting to linger we decided to speed back the way we came in.  Amortajada Lagoon is the largest lagoon in the Sea of Cortez and is worth a visit, especially if you want a first-hand experience with jejenes.

A Heron Standing Guard



The Channel empties into a Large Lagoon

Amortajada Lagoon - Channel Entrance on Left, Anchorage in Foreground