• Phytoplankton and zooplankton provide vital food for larvae as well as forage for fish. • The CMPA’s intertidal flora consists mainly of belts of Chilean kelp and, in the case of the subtidal flora, Chilean and giant kelp. Their importance lies in the fact that, as well as being a fishing resource in themselves, they create a substrate for extremely diverse communities (invertebrates, other macroalgae and larvae, including species of commercial importance such as abalone, limpets and crustaceans). • On the coast, 324 species of native vascular plants have been reported of which 19% have conservation problems as is also the case of 5%-10% of plant species from the south of the Atacama Region. The terrestrial fauna of birds, mammals and reptiles, like the vegetation formations, are governed by the prevailing semi-arid conditions and include guanacos and South American grey foxes. • Merely in the area between the Juan Soldado Hill and Punta de Choros, there are 73% of the species of plants endemic to Chile and 8% of those endemic to the Coquimbo Region.
c) Human Environment • The idea in this case is to show the different stages of human settlement in the region: fishing and gathering, livestock production, farming and mining.
• Mining boomed in La Higuera between 1840 and 1875, with the mineral exported through the port of Totoralillo, which began operation in 1844. By the early 1900s, however, most of the deposits were in the hands of artisanal miners. In 1840, the El Tofo iron mine was discovered and operations began there in 1870. They began to decline in 1955 as the deposit became exhausted. • The area’s main economic activities today are industrial and artisan fishing, mining, wind energy, tourism and agriculture.
d) Proposed Network of Marine Protected Areas • Map and zoning; • Map and model of the area; • Ecosystems; • Flora and fauna; • Target conservation species; • Practical information about conduct when observing birds and marine mammals (distance, noise, etc.).
• The first human settlements, dating back to between 9000 and 9500 BC, corresponded to the Chango people (between the far north of Chile to south of Coquimbo); around 2500 BC, they were followed by groups of hunters in the Copiapó and Choapa valleys. • The El Molle people (300 BC-700 AD), who are best known for their pottery with its geometric designs, farmed and kept animals and had a semi-stable pattern of settlement in the valleys and along the coast. With their use of copper, they were the first people to work metal. The Las Ánimas people (800-1000 AD) lived between the Copiapó and Limarí Rivers and incorporated polychromy into their pottery and ceramics as well as working metals, especially copper. • The Diaguita (900-1500 DC), who lived between the Copiapó and Choapa Rivers, made cave paintings. They practiced agriculture and their irrigation system allowed them to cultivate a variety of crops (maize, quinoa, beans and squash). Like the Chango, they fished using rafts. They were dominated by the Inca at the end of the fifteenth century. 123
