Swim with whale sharks in Baja, Mexico

MSNBC reports on the adventure of swimming with whale sharks, "the world's largest fish," in the Mexico's Sea of Cortez.

Whale sharks grow up to 40 feet but have very small teeth and aren't predatory. That means they won't try to eat you. Gentle giants, they gather each fall at Bahia de Los Angeles — almost halfway down the Baja Peninsula on the Sea of Cortez — to filter-feed on microscopic organisms called plankton.

The Mexican government also seems concerned about whale sharks, marking off with buoys the part of Bahia de los Angeles where whale sharks congregate and enforcing rules for interacting with the animals. Chasing or herding sharks isn't allowed. No more than three people per boat may be in the water at any time. Touching sharks is prohibited.

Read the full story: Swim with the world's largest fish in Mexico

Photo from Baja Airventures Inc.

Ride a bike in Mexico City

The Christian Science Monitor reports on the new bicycle friendliness of Mexico City.

How to help this sprawled-out city choked with more than 4 million vehicles and rampant air pollution? Ride a bike, says Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard.

New infrastructure, road closures, and bike-sharing programs are helping to promote the two-wheel answer to congestion and poor air quality. There’s the “Muevete en Bici,” which opens 8.7 miles of major avenues to only cyclists on Sundays. The city has also promised to build new bike parking and 186 miles of bike paths by 2012. There are bike racks in the Metro stations as well as bicycle-designated subway cars. Bike-sharing programs abound, the largest being the newly launched EcoBici (EcoBike) that has 1,100 bikes for use. It is the first of its kind in Latin America.

Read the full story: Mexico City makes way for bicycles

Photo by Alfredo Estrella / AFP

Mayans ruined environment that led to demise

New Scientist reports on evidence that vast deforestation led to the downfall of the Mayan people, not war or disease as previously thought.

Mayan ruins such as in Tikal, Guatemala (pic left) and Mexico are visited by millions of people each year interested in learning more about this disappeared culture.

The builders of the ancient Mayan temples at Tikal in Guatemala switched to inferior wood a few decades before they suddenly abandoned the city in the 9th century AD. The shift is the strongest evidence yet that Mayan civilisation collapsed because they ran out of resources, rather than, say, disease or warfare.

Read the full story: Temple timbers trace collapse of Mayan culture

Mexico Eco-lodges

The San Francisco Chronicle reviews six, new and more affordable, eco-friendly hotels in Mexico.

All the eco-resorts are under $200 per night.

The Genesis Ek Balam in the Yucatan is $44-$54 a night, uses natural ventilation (no A/C) and recycled materials in its design, and also helps save native animals and birds.

Read the full story: Six affordable eco-lodge escapes

Mexico tree-planting drive to combat deforestation

The El Paso Times reports on this Saturday's (July 5) tree-planting drive in Juarez, Mexico.

City officials and residents will plant 2,500 trees across the city "as part of national reforestation effort across Mexico."

Vast areas of Mexico's indigenous rainforests have been cut down due to rapid industrialization and population growth and today only 10% still survives.

Tree-planting drives across the country such as in Juarez hope to plant five million new trees.

Link to the tree-planting drive website: www.plantaunarbol.gob.mx/