“Mexico’s biggest crocodile sanctuary is only 20 minutes from here,” I told my sister-in-law while relaxing on a balcony overlooking the beautiful bay of Cuastecomates, near Barra de Navidad. She opened one eye and gave me a glance that seemed to say, “A cocodrilario? Ah, yes, toothy monsters that never move a muscle, piled topsy-turvy behind a cyclone fence. Boooooring!”
Fortunately, her sister Susy came to my rescue: “Not boring at all, Bety! The local people love crocodiles and feed them like we feed squirrels. Even the little kids participate. You should see the expressions on their faces when they’re carefully carrying newly laid eggs to a place where they can safely hatch.”
The human dimension of the cocodrilario thus caught Bety’s attention and off we went, the three of us, to tiny La Manzanilla, located 56 kilometers northwest of the bustling port of Manzanillo, with which it should not be confused.
The crocodile sanctuary used to be rather inconspicuous, with nothing more than a little sign warning visitors not to bring their dogs any closer. Crocs, they had told us, have been feuding with dogs since time immemorial and are ever so happy to gobble one up.
Today, however, we found big signs pointing to the newly revamped entrance and informing us that the estuary of La Manzanilla was declared an official Ramsar Wetland in 2008. The local people had been fighting for years to protect their mangroves from “developers” who had been systematically converting the marshland into real estate, continually reducing the space supporting not only crocodiles, but a wide variety of birds, fish, mollusks, crustaceans and reptiles.
La Manzanilla’s Cocodrilario has 500 American crocodiles, the biggest population on the Jalisco coast. These are young crocs, protected in a nursery.
We paid the 25-peso entrance fee and found ourselves on a narrow boardwalk suspended above the estuary waters. “This is new,” we told Bety. “Apparently Ramsar status has resulted in funding.”
The boardwalk brought us within a few meters of crocodiles of all sizes, some with names like “Pancho,” who we learned is 46 years old, weighs 380 kilos and is four meters long.
Visitors are allowed to feed the crocs here, many of which looked quite lively as they raced to gulp down a treat with a toothy grin.
We had not taken more than 20 steps when we found ourselves face to face with a yellow-crowned night heron perched on the walkway railing. We were amazed, as it was 1 p.m., the very worst time imaginable for bird-watching.
I had supposed that the boardwalk would follow the rather short trail that had been here during my last visit. Instead, it now takes you on a 650-meter circular route through the mangroves as well as through open waters, allowing you to quietly approach the natural inhabitants of the estuary. So we got to see, up close, not only crocs and iguanas, but a wide variety of water birds, including anhingas, tropical kingbirds and a white ibis.
The anhinga is one of 63 species of birds residing in the estuary at La Manzanilla.
Halfway around the route, there’s a lookout tower offering a great view of the estuary and at the end of the loop you come to a crocodile nursery, where, of course, you can take a picture of yourself with a baby croc in your arms.
Dr. Bertha Ibarra decided the Cocodrilario was the best part of her trip to the coast.
Here we learned that the sanctuary, which covers some 264 hectares, has a population of 400 to 500 American Crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) at the moment and is continuously making improvements, like recently installed toilets. “Several biologists are now working with us,” we were told, “and very soon we will be opening our own crocodile museum.”
Activist and eco-preneur Davison Collins, who worked on the first crocodile inventories and studies in the estuary, says the cocodrilario, the pending “Crocodile Museum” and the interpretive mangrove birding tours in La Manzanilla are “prime examples of well-integrated community based eco-tourism and conservation initiative which help insure that the community of La Manzanilla will continue to control and cherish its most valuable jewel – its mega-diverse mangrove – and not fall prey to yet another tragedy of the commons scenario. Such a scenario occurred in Barra de Navidad, for example, where their mangrove was significantly compromised to the point that the once-thriving shell fish population plummeted and now they are having major erosion problems with their beach, among other environmental problems directly related to the destruction of their mangrove.”
Costalegre Eco-Adventure (315-351-5305) offers a dusk boat ride (1.5 hours) through the estuary and has a beautifully illustrated guide to 63 resident species of birds and 16 migratory species. The guide lists all these birds in English, Spanish and Latin and you can get an electronic version of it from This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Visitors who want to do the evening boat ride could stay at one of the local hotels, several of which have five-star ratings on Tripadvisor. In addition, there are some nice campsites on the beach (Boca de Iguana) just north of town.
The sanctuary is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and is on Facebook as “Cocodrilario Ejido La Manzanilla.” Should you visit it? Take Bety Ibarra’s final word: “The Crocodile Sanctuary turned out to be the best part of my entire trip to the beach.”
How to get there
The fastest and most convenient route from Guadalajara is by toll road, via Colima and Manzanillo. La Manzanilla is just a half-hour’s drive northwest of Barra de Navidad/Melaque and is sign-posted. Drive into the pueblito on Avenida Lázaro Cárdenas and, just before the road ends at the beach, you´ll see the Cocodrilario on your right. Google Maps lists it as Cocodrilario La Manzanilla, Jalisco. Driving time from Guadalajara is about four and a half hours.