In the state of Campeche, Mexico, ecological corridors have been identified as a key strategy for the long-term conservation of many species. Campeche has over 2.3 million hectares (approximately 9,200 square miles) of protected areas, representing nearly 41% of the state’s area and key to one particular species: jaguars.
Connecting protected areas allows jaguars to move freely between them, therefore boosting genetic diversity and contributing to the species’ long-term survival. Since jaguars are top predators and sensitive to habitat disruption, they are considered a keystone species. The health of their population is representative of broader ecosystem function: scientists assume that if jaguars can move between protected areas, other species will be able to as well.
The Balam Beh Biological Corridor, also known as “The Jaguar’s Path”, is one of the identified biological corridors that connects two major jaguar populations in the Laguna de Terminos Reserve and the Calakum Biosphere Reserve. Referred to as “corredores biológicos” in Spanish, the related documentation equates them to “corredores ecológicos” or “ecological corridors” as defined in the IUCN ‘Guidelines for conserving connectivity through ecological networks and corridors‘. Established in September 2024, the new biological corridor forms part of the Jaguar 2030 Roadmap, which seeks to secure habitat connectivity from Northern Mexico to Northern Argentina.
The legal basis for the Balam Beh Biological Corridor stems first from the 2012 National General Climate Change Law and then from a series of state laws in Campeche. In November 2020, the Climate Change Law for the State of Campeche was published, dictating that one objective of the state’s climate change adaptation approach is to “support maintenance, restoration, and establishment of biological corridors to permit adaptation in the distribution of species and the continuity of the structure of their ecosystems.” By defining biological corridors as legally defined territories with rules for implementation and management, the law provides the framework that enables the formal legal establishment of the Balam Beh Biological Corridor.
An additional basis for recognition of the corridor is the 2023 Climate Change Regulations requiring corridors to be established with a “Justification Study”. This initiative falls under the 2021-2027 State Development Plan under Strategy 1, entitled “Increasing the area of conservation and ecological connectivity.” The justification study was then conducted in accordance with these requirements, and the details of the study results can be found in the official Preliminary Justification Study of the Biological Corridor of Balam Beh.
Dr. Diana Friedeberg, Director of Panthera in Mexico, has stated, “The reality is that we have to protect biological corridors because human populations continue to grow, and it will become increasingly difficult to allocate large natural areas for conservation where jaguars can live. Therefore, it is crucial that we conserve and protect these biological corridors to maintain connectivity between isolated populations. Jaguars need a high degree of genetic diversity to survive long-term; otherwise, in about 50 years, all their offspring will be related, and as diversity decreases, new diseases and countless other problems begin to emerge.”
The official establishment of the Balam Beh Biological Corridor marks a significant step toward safeguarding long-term ecological connectivity in Campeche and across the wider region. The corridor will continue to connect protected areas and the multiple species that rely on them for decades to come. In this way, the Balam Beh Biological Corridor is not only a conservation achievement for jaguars, but it also serves as a model for integrative environmental policy prioritizing the use of ecological connectivity.
Geographic location of the Balam Beh Corridor in the state of Campeche. Image Source: Preliminary Justification Study of the Biological Corridor of Balam Beh (Gobierno del Estado de Campeche).
Please note: This digest is intended to provide up-to-date information on policy development from a neutral, unaffiliated position as it relates to connectivity and corridor science and management.
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