• This protected area boasts a total 1396 species distributed across 9 animal and vegetal groups. The marine area accounts for 254 species of mollusks, from which Melongena patula, Pinctada mazatlanica, Strombus galeatus, and Strombus peruvianus are threatened locally, 240 species of marine or estuary fish, 237 crustacean species of which the following are threatened locally: Cardisoma crissum, Panulirus gracilis, Pilumnus nobilii, Pinnotheres malaguena, Alpheus colombiensis, Alpheus wickstenae, Hypolobocera malaguena and Synalpheus arostris; 68 polychaeta species; 28 echinoderm species, 18 sponge species; 18 cnidaria species of which the following are threatened locally: Leptogorgia alba, Leptogorgia ramulus, Pacifigorgia agassizii, Pacifigorgia eximia, Muricea robusta and Muricea squarrosae; 6 species of other minor groups of marine animals.

The large diversity of octocorallia in the central section of the bay, and the vicinity of Palma and Curichiche islands, is of note (Saavedra and Zapata, 1992.) This area also features 37 marine algae species. Additionally, some threatened species at national and global levels were found, amongst which are several bivalvia such as the piangua, Anadara tuberculosa and Anadara similis, gastropoda such as the snail, Strombus galeatus, crustaceans and fish such as sea horses (Hippocampus ingens.)

An additional 107 bird species, 30 species of coastal mammals, and 12 species of water mammals, are reportedly sighted in the area. The coastal zone of the area features 14 species of freshwater fish, 17 reptile species, 10 amphibian species, and some fungi and insects.

The amount of humpback whales, Megapteta novaeangliae, is especially noteworthy as Bahia Malaga is a newborn whale zone, and one of the largest zones of reproductive concentration in the Colombian Pacific. Its coastal waters are calm and warm, which appeals to whale mothers with whale calves. As it is also a reproduction area, whales undertake lifecycle activities there, such as mating, giving birth, feeding, raising, socializing, and resting (Avila, 2000.) The humpback whale is currently threatened per the Convention on International Trade of Wild Fauna and Flora.

The raw annual birth rate is high, at 0.19 and 0.28 whale calves per whale. That is between 19% and 28%, one of the highest in the world. Through capture-recapture methods with photo-identified specimens, a population between 474 – 676 has been determined for Malaga (Florez-Gonzalez et al., 2003.), and 547 – 1167 (Capella et al, 1998), which represents between one third and one fourth of the total estimated population for the southeastern Pacific. The greatest density of humpback whales at Bahia Malaga occurs between September and October.