Cayos Arcas

The Cayos Arcas, three belonging to Mexico small sandy cays in the Gulf of Mexico 130 km west off the coast of Campeche and 300 km south-west of the atoll Arrecife Alacranes, the outer western edge of Campeche Bank. Its area is 22.8 hectares. They belong to the community Champotón in the state of Campeche.

The Cayos Arcas lie on a three to four square kilometers of shallow water platform. The islands on the reef include a small lagoon. In the vicinity of the sea floor drops to a depth of 40 meters.

The main island is Cayo del Centro with a size of 13.7 ha, which is sparsely covered with grass. Shrubs and a few small groups of palms are also available. A pair of beacon stands on the Cay. Cayo del Este is 5.2 hectares in size and 3 m high; Located on a reef 0.5 km southeast of Cayo del Centro. Cayo del Oeste measures 3.9 hectares and is 2 m high, located on a small reef about 1.3 km west of the southern tip of Cayo del Centro.

The island chain is uninhabited and has no infrastructure except beacons on Cayo del Centro. The vegetation on the islands consists of sparse grasses and shrubs. The islands are used for navigation assistance. Cayos Arcas Terminal, an extensive chain of oil stations on the Arcas reef, is located south of the islands. You are currently among the largest oil producers in the Gulf.

The Arcas chain was often targets of military operations in the Gulf in the 19th century. A naval flotilla of the Republic of Texas occupied the island a short time during the Yucatán rebellion. During the American Civil War the Confederate famous sailing ship CSS Alabama used the hidden island chain as a retreat point to wait for the implementation of the next operations in the Gulf.