Hotel Slashes Jaguar Numbers by 88% in Reserve

Calakmul, Campeche — The Federal Government has repeatedly refused to acknowledge the damages to the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, located in the state of Campeche, where one of six Military Hotels was constructed as part of a project alternative to the Tren Maya. However, a camera trap monitoring study conducted from 2022 to 2024 revealed that the presence of the jaguar decreased by 88 percent in the water bodies it used to frequent, due to human activity, and by 34 percent for the rest of the wild animals.

The evaluation of the impact of tourist infrastructure on wildlife activity in 17 water bodies documented the damages to wild fauna. The report was conducted by biologist Viviana Esmeralda Chan Quiñones and biologist Carlos Mauricio Delgado Martínez.

In total, they monitored 14 species of birds and mammals using camera trap models within a range of 1 to 20 kilometers from the Military Hotel. The records that were compared were from 2021 and 2022 against data from 2023 and 2024. That is, before, during, and after the construction of the tourist complex.

"I have been analyzing the behavior and presence of species in the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve; we have truly seen a change. I have data from when the hotel construction was not yet there, I had favorable records of the presence of jaguar, deer, collared peccary, and white-lipped peccary, which is protected. Now that I returned to continue monitoring, I encountered the construction and we noticed the decrease in presence, for example, of the jaguar," explained Viviana Chan, a student in the Master's program in Biological Sciences and Sustainability at the Autonomous University of Campeche, in an interview.

To obtain precise information on the impacts of building a hotel in a protected area, the study took into account the road remodeling works. Furthermore, the remodeling of the road was considered, and to achieve the greatest accuracy in the data, potential biases such as dry and rainy seasons were contemplated.

Mammals were the most affected by this Military Hotel. In numbers, the white-lipped peccary decreased by 77 percent; the white-tailed deer by 73 percent; the agouti by 70 percent; and the hog-nosed skunk by 65 percent less.

Among birds, the ocellated turkey showed a 54 percent decrease during construction. "I believe there is a disturbance from noise, from more human presence, and this has caused the species to move away. Before, it was common to find turkeys on the road; they are moving further away," added Viviana.

The Military Hotel is a luxury resort that began its construction in 2023. It was not subjected to indigenous consultation and, in fact, the work was kept hidden during its development. Covered with improvised walls covered by tarps and, of course, with protection from the National Guard.

The resort has 144 rooms, a parking lot for 212 vehicles, and two swimming pools. It occupies an area of 2.96 hectares within the reserve. The cost of a double room per night is 2,184 pesos.

"It is very striking that a hotel was built inside the reserve because its impacts can be irreversible. It is important to note that the impact will not be restricted to the three hectares of the hotel but to the entire reserve," explained the Master in Biology, Carlos Delgado.

Given the presence of the Military Hotel, the biologists agree that the only thing left is to try to mitigate the damage. "What they should do is take real mitigation measures, such as controlling access hours; they cannot allow people to go out at midnight because it affects the fauna. Establish clear speed limits and wildlife crossings for species that are run over, like turtles and snakes," insisted Carlos.

The Calakmul Biosphere Reserve is the largest tropical forest reserve in Mexico and forms part of the second-largest extension of tropical forests in America.