Los Cóbanos-Acajutla is located in the Acajutla and Sonsonate municipalities of El Salvador, adjacent to the villages of Acajutla and Los Cóbanos. This area encompasses the Complejo Los Cóbanos Wetland of International Importance (Ramsar site) on the southwest part of El Salvador and the Acajutla area to the westward part. Situated within the Pacific Central-American Coastal Large Marine Ecosystem, there are two rivers, Sensunapan and Banderas, that merge with the Pacific Ocean on the northwest and east sides of the area. Both rivers discharge large loads of sediment and organic matter, and many small estuaries are associated with this zone. Littoral fringes include rocky and sandy shores while subtidal habitats include boulders as well as sandy and muddy patches (Arrivillaga 2009). Subtidal coral colonies exist from 0.5–3 m, where the dominant species is Lobe Coral Porites lobata. There are also small colonies of Psammocora spp. that cover an area of 0.5–1 km². In deeper waters, there is abundant coverage of soft corals including Carijoa spp. as well as more than ten gorgonid species.

This Important Shark and Ray Area is delineated taking into consideration the extent of the Complejo Los Cobános Ramsar site, along with the reach of artisanal fisheries from Acajutla harbour (9 km from the harbour and 5.5 to 9 km from the coast, i.e., the area of most productivity; González Leiva et al. 2017). The area is delineated from inshore and surface waters (0 m) to the maximum depth of the area at 60 m.