Cotoca

Cotoca is a canton and Municipality of Andrés Ibáñez Province in Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia. The municipality consists of two cantons – Cotoca itself and Puerto Pailas. In 2010 it had an estimated population of 23,951 for the canton and 56,451 for the municipality.^[1]

Cotoca
Town
Main church
Cotoca Municipality within Andrés Ibáñez
Cotoca
Coordinates: 17°45′13″S 62°59′48″W
Country	Bolivia
Department	Santa Cruz Department
Province	Andrés Ibáñez Province
Municipality	Cotoca
Area
• Total	8.35 km2 (3.22 sq mi)
Elevation	363 m (1,191 ft)
Population  (2012)
• Total	26,305
• Density	3,200/km2 (8,200/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-4 (BOT)
Climate	Aw

In 1799, the Catholic Church authorised the building of a shrine to the Virgen de Cotoca, an image of Mary that was seen in the town. The Virgin is now the patron saint of the entire province of Santa Cruz and her feast from 8 to 15 December draws thousands of Bolivians.^[2]

The population increased tenfold in the last forty years:

Year	Canton	Municipality
1976	2,107[3]
1992	9,229[4]	21,252 [5]
2001	15,181[6]	36,425[7]
2009	23 951[8]	56,451[9]

Politics

In the Bolivian regional election, 2010, Cotoca placed the Verdes (Bolivia) party of Governor Rubén Costas first, although by less than the overall result for the province:^[10]

Party	Votes	%	% across Department
Verdes (Bolivia)	5,623	34.0%	50.6%
MAS	3,533	21.4%	36.3%
Tiluchi	3149	19.1%	n/a
SOL	3067	18.6%	n/a
ASIP	703	4.3%	n/a
Broad Front (MNR & Autonomia)	453	2.7%	4,3%

Climate

Climate data for Cotoca, elevation 359 m (1,178 ft), (1991–2007)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	32.3 (90.1)	31.8 (89.2)	31.8 (89.2)	30.4 (86.7)	27.6 (81.7)	26.9 (80.4)	27.0 (80.6)	29.9 (85.8)	31.2 (88.2)	32.5 (90.5)	32.6 (90.7)	31.7 (89.1)	30.5 (86.9)
Daily mean °C (°F)	27.2 (81.0)	26.8 (80.2)	26.5 (79.7)	24.9 (76.8)	22.4 (72.3)	21.5 (70.7)	21.1 (70.0)	23.4 (74.1)	24.7 (76.5)	26.5 (79.7)	26.7 (80.1)	26.7 (80.1)	24.9 (76.8)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	22.0 (71.6)	21.7 (71.1)	21.2 (70.2)	19.6 (67.3)	17.1 (62.8)	16.2 (61.2)	15.3 (59.5)	16.8 (62.2)	18.3 (64.9)	20.5 (68.9)	20.8 (69.4)	21.6 (70.9)	19.3 (66.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	136.8 (5.39)	167.9 (6.61)	111.4 (4.39)	86.9 (3.42)	49.3 (1.94)	49.1 (1.93)	24.3 (0.96)	26.6 (1.05)	68.1 (2.68)	92.5 (3.64)	138.4 (5.45)	193.1 (7.60)	1,144.4 (45.06)
Average precipitation days	8.3	9.9	7.7	6.2	5.6	5.6	2.9	2.9	3.7	5.2	7.2	10.1	75.3
Average relative humidity (%)	91.5	91.6	91.1	90.9	90.3	89.3	87.8	87.4	88.2	88.9	89.2	91.2	89.8
Source: Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología de Bolivia[11][12]