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Guardalavaca

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Photograph of Guardalavaca
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Guardalavaca

Total population

4,704

Elevation5 m
Coordinates21.12°, -75.84°

Demographic figures from ONEI Cuba. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.

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City facts

Elevation
5 m
Time zone
Eastern Time Zone

Facts from Wikidata (CC0).

Overview

Guardalavaca is a town in the Holguín Province of Cuba. It is a tourist location due to its white sandy beaches and warm waters. Guardalavaca beach is protected by a large coral reef and is visited by both local Cubans and tourists. Most Cuban workers in the all-inclusive hotels are transported daily in buses from neighbouring cities like Holguin, Banes, and Rafael Freyre, as only a few Cubans live in Guardalavaca due to the small size of the resort. Between Guardalavaca and Playa Esmeralda are dry tropical forest where endemic Cuban birdlife like hummingbirds Cuban emerald can be seen. Endemic Cuban knight anole lizards are numerous in these forest.

Read more on Wikipedia

History & geography

History

"Guardalavaca" literally means "guard the cow" in Spanish. There are several accounts as to how this name may have originated; one version maintains that Guardalavaca is a malapropism for its original name Guardalabarca, meaning "guard the boat". The area was once heavily targeted by sea pirates, and Bahía de Naranjo near what is now the town of Guardalavaca is a secluded shallow bay connected to the open sea by a narrow inlet, which made it a proper safe haven to guard ships against pirates. On the other hand, the name may have originated from pirates going after the cattle grazing in the area. As pirates were spotted, the local farmers would thus shout, "Guarda la vaca" - guard the cow. The Cuban government has attempted on several occasions to change the name of the area as they deem it not to be very appealing; they have so far been unsuccessful.

Geography

It is located on the northern shore of Cuba, bordering Bahia de Naranjo (Orange Bay), and is part of the municipality of Banes. Beaches in Guardalavaca include the main Guardalavaca Beach, as well as a number of smaller beaches located west and east of the main beach. Several beaches west of Guardalavaca have also been developed for tourism but there is not abundant housing for local population and little infrastructure outside of the hotels. These beaches include 3 resort areas. Five km to the west is Playa Esmeralda, and several smaller beaches at Bahia de Naranjo nature reserve. Ten km to the west are Playa Yuraguanal and Playa Pesquero. All of these beaches feature coral sand and are protected by coral reefs and feature all-inclusive hotels.

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Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).

Geography

Latitude
21.1181
Longitude
-75.8350
Water area
View on OpenStreetMap

Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.

Climate

Air quality

Walkability

Amenities nearby

Wildlife & biodiversity

Observations (last 5 yrs, 10 mi)
9,617
Distinct species (top 10)
10

Most-observed species

  • Northern Mockingbird
    Mimus polyglottos (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
    300
  • Turkey Vulture
    Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
    288
  • Red-legged Thrush
    Turdus plumbeus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
    279
  • Greater Antillean Grackle
    Quiscalus niger (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
    222
  • Cuban Blackbird
    Dives atroviolaceus (Orbigny, 1839) · Aves
    221
  • Cape May Warbler
    Setophaga tigrina (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
    209
  • Cuban Emerald
    Riccordia ricordii (Gervais, 1835) · Aves
    206
  • American Redstart
    Setophaga ruticilla (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
    196

Citizen-science & research observations from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF).

Earthquake history

Quakes ≥ 2.5 (25 yrs, 62 mi)
7
Largest magnitude
5
Largest event
2022-11-08

Most recent

Events from the USGS Earthquake Catalog (global) (FDSN Event Web Service).

Photos

Sights & places nearby

Notable people from here

Geography & sun

Avg solar (kWh/m²/day)
5.59
Annual solar (kWh/m²)
2,040

Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.

Nearby airports

Public attention

Books about this place

Recent natural events nearby

Ground air-quality sensors

Recently spotted species

Events

Geotagged photos within ~6 miles of Guardalavaca, from Wikimedia Commons contributors.

Photos via Wikimedia Commons — see each image page for license & attribution.

Sources

  • Wikipedia
  • Wikimedia Commons
  • Wikidata
  • USGS Earthquake Catalog (global feed)
  • GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)
  • Open-Meteo / sunrise-sunset.org