Playa Tortuguera X'cacel-X'cacelito. 02/02/04; Quintana Roo; 362 ha; 20°20'N 87°21'W. National Sanctuary. The site has the highest breeding index in the Quintana Roo State and in Mexico for the Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) and the Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta). It also includes a terrestrial band of 35 ha because of the importance of its vegetation: forests of Kuka palms (Pseudophoenix sargentti), Florida Thatch palm (Thrina radiata) and mangroves (Rhizophora mangle, Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa and Conocarpus erecta). The area also presents some underground water outcrops close to the sea shore that enhance the development of aquatic vegetation and the abundance of juvenile fishes and coral, some listed on the Endangered Species Lists. The main threat to the X'Cacel and X'Cacelito beaches is the land ownership - the site lies on private properties and though the turtles have been traditionally protected by the landowners, some tourist infrastructures development projects could threaten the site and its fauna, as e.g. the one presented in 1999 and rejected by the Federal Government in 2001. Ramsar site no. 1351. Most recent RIS information: 2004.