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Título del libro: Latin American Coral Reefs
Título del capítulo: The Atlantic coral reefs of Mexico

Autores UNAM:
ERIC JORDAN DAHLGREN; ROSA ELISA RODRIGUEZ MARTINEZ;
Autores externos:

Idioma:
Inglés
Año de publicación:
2003
Resumen:

The Mexican Atlantic coast extends from the westem Caribbean to the Gulf of Mexico. This is a subtropical environment where shallow seas are strongly influenced by the tourism-associated coastal development in generating multiple conflictive uses, as well as threatening the well being of the reefs themselves. Well-developed coral reefs are found along the Mexican Atlantic margin from the western Caribbean to the Gulf of Mexico. This chapter characterizes the wide array of coral reefs found in this area and the coral communities that colonize them. Differences in oceanic connectivity and terrestrial influence result in the delineation of three major reef subregions-Caribbean, Campeche Bank and southwest Gulf of Mexico reef systems. The environmental settings of these reefs, as well as the climatic and biological perturbations to which they have been subjected, are also discusses in the chapter. It reviews anthropogenic influences from fisheries to coastal development, and makes a gross assessment of the coral community condition in these reefs. The chapter also describes the coral reef protection in Mexico up to 2001, and comments on its problems and effectiveness. © 2003. Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Entidades citadas de la UNAM: