{"id":52578,"date":"2009-08-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-08-04T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/royalresorts.com\/blog\/sail-to-bird-island\/"},"modified":"2021-11-29T22:42:10","modified_gmt":"2021-11-29T22:42:10","slug":"sail-to-bird-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/cancun\/sail-to-bird-island\/","title":{"rendered":"Sail to Bird Island"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

Grab your binoculars, camera and snorkel mask and set sail for an island adventure. A two-hour boat ride to the north of Cancun<\/strong>, you\u2019ll spy a tiny island of mangroves, dunes and palm groves. This desert island is Contoy<\/strong>, also known as la isla de los pajaros or \u201cthe island of the birds\u201d<\/strong> in Spanish and when you disembark you\u2019ll understand why! There are birds everywhere: pelicans<\/strong> waddle along the wooden pier, frigate birds<\/strong> circle overhead looking to snatch a fish dinner from an unsuspecting gull<\/strong>, dainty terns<\/strong> swoop low over the waves and the mangroves echo with the raucous cries of nesting cormorants<\/strong> and egrets<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A protected area since 1961, and declared a national park in 1998<\/strong>, Contoy is a refuge for 150 species of native and migrant birds<\/strong>. It has one of the largest populations of brown pelicans in the Caribbean, a 5,000-strong colony of frigate birds<\/strong> and 3,000 double-crested cormorants<\/strong>. Other residents include roseate spoonbills<\/strong> and ten members of the heron family such as the great blue heron<\/strong>, reddish and snowy egret<\/strong>, the yellow-crowned night heron<\/strong> and the boat-billed heron or kuka<\/strong>. Flamingos<\/strong> can sometimes be spotted and during the winter months the island is a refuge for ducks<\/strong>, plovers<\/strong>, sandpipers<\/strong> and other shore birds that migrate south to escape the cold of northern latitudes.<\/p>\n

Sea turtles<\/strong> nest on island beaches during the summer and the calm waters of Imaxpoit Bay <\/strong>are home to rays and colorful fish such as sergeant majors. To the south of Contoy<\/strong> is Ixlache Reef<\/strong>, the first link in a chain of coral reefs stretching south through the Mexican Caribbean<\/strong> to Belize. Known as the Mesoamerican Reef, this incredible coral formation is the second longest in the world.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Getting here is half the fun. Your boat journey will take you through a stretch of water sporting shades of turquoise you didn\u2019t know existed and you may be lucky enough to spot flying fish<\/strong> and dolphins<\/strong>. Spend the day snorkeling, relax on the beach and explore the island\u2019s nature trails on the lookout for birds.<\/p>\n

Contoy<\/strong> is uninhabited except for the park wardens and the occasional biologist doing field work. Visit the museum beside the pier to find out more about island ecology, flora and fauna and be sure to climb the observation tower for a better view of the island and the birds.<\/p>\n

Why not plan a trip to Contoy<\/a><\/strong> for your next vacation, contact Thomas More Travel <\/strong>at tourdesk@royalresorts.com<\/a> for details. Or you can also reserve your Contoy tours online.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[46,99],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cancun","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\r\nSail to Bird Island - Blog<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/cancun\/sail-to-bird-island\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sail to Bird Island - Blog\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/cancun\/sail-to-bird-island\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Blog\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2009-08-04T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-11-29T22:42:10+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Elizabeth Arteaga\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Elizabeth Arteaga\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/cancun\/sail-to-bird-island\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.royalresorts.com\/blog\/cancun\/sail-to-bird-island\/\",\"name\":\"Sail to Bird Island - 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