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The Caribbean region is a distinct
Large Marine Ecosystem with characteristic physical and biological parameters.
The region is bathed by warm water currents and sea temperatures vary little
throughout the year. High biological productivity in coastal areas and low
productivity offshore are characteristic features of the Caribbean. There are
three main coastal habitats in the Caribbean: coral reefs, mangroves, and sea
grass beds. All three habitats are areas of high productivity and important to
island biological, fishery, and cultural resources. All three habitats are also
in decline. Coral reefs are among the most diverse and beautiful natural
environments. They occur only in warm and clear waters. Corals provide food and
habitat for hundreds of species of fish, invertebrates, and plants. Biological
factors, including predation, competition, and mutualism, and physical factors
such as hurricanes combine to maintain the high diversity that characterizes
coral reef ecosystems. Coral reefs are in decline worldwide. It is estimated
that 10% of the world's reefs have been lost and that if current patterns
continue, then by the year 2010 a further 30% will be lost. In response to this
decline many countries are enacting protection laws, and designating parks to
halt reef degradation. Caribbean coral reefs, on a region-wide, threat-by-threat
basis. This chapter examines these threats, along with available information on
condition and protection of reefs, in greater geographic detail for nine
Caribbean sub-regions.
Many people in coastal communities throughout Latin America and
the Caribbean depend on the natural resources provided by reefs for their
livelihoods. Ensuring proper management of the reefs is vital for the economic
and environmental health of the region, but there is a lack of quality
information about the relationship between human activities and coral reef
condition across the region. The Reefs at Risk in the Caribbean project is a
response to this information need. The primary goal of the project is to raise
awareness and improve management of coral reefs across the region through
improving the knowledge base on the status of and threats to coral reefs. In
collaboration with partner institutions across the region, we are implementing
an analysis to link human activities with reef condition.
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