 The hurricane caused severe damage to the environment ; 200 square miles ( 700 km ² ) of low @-@ lying rainforest and pine and evergreen oak woodlands were greatly damaged in southern Mexico . Strong waves produced severe beach erosion in some locations . The erosion affected two nesting cycles for the Olive Ridley turtle , destroying about 40 million eggs . Nearly 806 @,@ 000 nests were affected , and about 50 % of these were wiped out . The deadliest and most intense hurricane to hit southern Mexico since 1959 , the hurricane was the first documented hurricane strike on Pacific coral reefs . Crop damage was extreme , and 400 @,@ 000 bags of coffee were lost . In the days after the hurricane , soybean and wheat prices increased . In all , Hurricane Pauline had a large effect on fauna in Southern Mexico . 
