The tidal bay on the north east end of the island was the site of a salt mining facility run by the company Salinas del Pacifico SA de CV.

[1] The island became part of the newly created Bahía de Loreto National Park in the 1970s.

Isla del Carmen supports many bird species, such as the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis), the scissor-tailed flycatcher, magnificent frigatebird (Fregata magnificent) and the blue-footed booby (Sula nebouxii) as well as various reptiles and rodent mammals.

The island provides nesting sites for seabirds such as the yellow-footed gull (Larus livens), the osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and the American oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus).

[1] A program to reestablish the once native Big Horn Sheep population on the island began in 1995.