Laguna Santiaguillo

On the plains north of the state capital, between the municipalities of Canatlán and Nuevo Ideal, the Laguna de Santiaguillo stretches for nearly 45 km through semi-arid country. It is really two lakes, one permanent and one that comes and goes, and together they make up 80 percent of the wetland area in the whole state. Much of the southern half is dry for long stretches of the year, while the northern end near Nuevo Ideal holds more water. Apple and pear orchards, farmland and broad stands of cattail surround it, and the cattail beds are what shelter many of its birds.

On February 2, 2012, it was listed as a Ramsar site, a wetland of international importance, covering 24,016 hectares. The Ramsar record calls it the most important and representative wetland of the Durango valleys and the state's main wintering ground for waterbirds that breed in Alaska and Canada, with large flocks of ducks, geese and cranes. The Mexican duck, a species with a small range, nests here, as does the northern pintail. Local press counts some 230 bird species arriving each year, and the North American Wetlands Conservation Council ranks it among the continent's 30 most important wetlands. It sits on the flyway along which many birds travel each year between North America and Central and South America.

Drought and water extraction are the main threats, and the lake has a management program with a restoration plan that involves the surrounding communities. This is not a park with facilities but a working wetland ringed by ejidos, where visitors come to fish, walk the shore and watch birds. The big gatherings of ducks and geese are a winter sight.