Belize has some of the most extensive coral reef resources in the region. The coastline is fringed by a shallow shelf with a barrier reef running along its outer edge. The Belize Barrier Reef is the longest in the Caribbean, 230 kilometers in length, though there are barrier like reef tracts in Florida and Cuba which are considerably longer. To the north the barrier reef becomes joined to the mainland at Ambergris Cay, a southerly extension of the Yucatan Peninsula. At this point the reef system becomes fringing, and continues north along the coastline of Mexico. These reefs, together with others to the south in Honduras, are sometimes known as the Meso-American Reef, in recognition of the interconnected nature of their ecosystems.
Brazil
Coral reef growth in Brazil is limited to the northeast and eastern shores. Most of the northern coastline of Brazil is dominated by areas of massive riverine input, with freshwater and sediments dominating the continental shelf over wide areas to the east of the Amazon. This coastline is also swept by the west and northward flow of the northern arm of the South Equatorial Current, and these factors combine to isolate Brazil from the Caribbean. A result of this is that Brazil’s coral fauna is notable for having a low species diversity yet a high degree of endemism. Just 19 species of reef-building coral are recognized, of which at least six (including all three species of the genus Mussismilia), and possibly as many as ten, are found nowhere else. Another interesting feature of Brazilian coral communities is that there are no acroporid corals, which are the major shallow water corals elsewhere in the world.
Colombia
Colombia enjoys 1 700 kilometers of Caribbean coastline, but coral reefs are restricted to less than 150 kilometers, located away from major estuaries and sediment plumes. The Caribbean Current forms a gyre in the Colombian Basin, moving water in a north to northeasterly direction off the Colombian coast. This creates localized upwellings, bringing cold water to the surface and further curtailing the distribution of coral reefs. Reefs occur off Acandi in the far west and Punto Lopez in the east, but the most extensive structures are those off Santa Marta (at Punta Betin, Isla Morro Grande, Bahía Granate, Bahía Chengue and Bahía Gayraca) and Cartagena (at Islas de San Bernardo and Islas del Rosario). Several hundred kilometers northwest of Colombia there are a number of islands and reefs which also form part of Colombia (although they actually lie closer to Nicaragua) on the Nicaraguan Rise. These include the larger populated islands of San Andrés and Providencia, but also a number of shallow reefs including those on the banks of Quitasueño, Serrana and Roncador, and the atolls of Courtown and Albuquerque.
Costa Rica
The Pacific coastline of both Costa Rica and Panama is strongly affected by extremes of water temperature associated with warm El Niño (~33°C) events and more frequent cool upwelling episodes (~15°C). These restrict offshore reef development in many areas, while terrestrial runoff greatly restricts reef development on mainland coasts. In general, reef development is sporadic and mostly at point locations around offshore islands. Most reefs in this region consist of shallow (less than 10 meters) sub-tidal Pocillopora banks bound together with calcareous algae, while Porites lobata is also a major reef builder in Costa Rica. Species diversity is low, but 23 species of hermatypic corals have been recorded on the Pacific side of Panama, and 18 in Costa Rica. Despite their simple community structure and low diversity, coral cover on these small reefs can be very high, reaching over 90 percent on healthy reefs. Cores through these reefs have shown carbonate accretions up to 10-12 meters thick, suggesting vertical accretion rates similar to many reefs in the Indo-Pacific. The Pacific reefs were severely impacted by the 1982-83 El Niño event, which drove mass bleaching and mortality in all areas. In Costa Rica recovery has generally been good and, despite repeated bleaching in 1992 and 1997-98, coral cover remains high in most areas. By contrast, recovery on many reefs in Panama has not been great.
Ecuador
A few coral communities occur on the mainland coast of Ecuador and one true reef at Machalilla. However, it is in the Galapagos Islands that reefs are best developed. This archipelago is influenced by a major surface current, the South Equatorial Current, which flows from the east, largely fed by the cool Peru Oceanic Current (20-24°C) and the colder Peru Coastal Current (15°C). This current is strongly driven by the nearly constant southeast trade winds, while additional impetus is given by the Panama Current which flows south from the Panama Bight in December to January. Below the South Equatorial Current, an easterly Equatorial Undercurrent is generated at a depth of 100 meters, which is deflected to the surface by Fernandina and Isabela. Cool nutrient-rich water is therefore present all year round (except during El Niño events) and this restricts coral growth and reef development to the eastern sides of Isabela, Santa Cruz and the northern coasts of San Cristóbal.
Honduras
Honduras has a long mainland coast facing the Caribbean Sea but dominated by heavy riverine inputs and extensive mangrove communities. There are no recorded coastal coral reefs, although small, poorly developed coral communities are recorded from Puerto Cortes, La Ceiba and Trujillo. Important coral reefs occur around the Bay Islands (Utila, Roatán, Guanaja) and also the Cayos Cochinos which lie between Roatán and the mainland. Fringing and patch reefs also occur to the east associated with the Misquitia Cays and Banks, which are a continuation of the reef systems on the Nicaraguan shelf to the south. There are also reefs associated with the remote Swan Islands (Islas del Cisne) some 150 kilometers northeast of the mainland.
Mexico
Coral reefs and communities occur throughout Mexico but are concentrated in four main areas: the Gulf of California and Pacific Coast; the nearshore reefs between Tampico and Veracruz in the western Bahía de Campeche; the more distant offshore reefs of the Campeche Bank; and the fringing reef and atolls of the Caribbean Sea.
Nicaragua
The east coast of Nicaragua lies within the Caribbean Sea Large Marine Ecosystem (CSLME). The Caribbean Sea is the second largest sea in the world encompassing an area of 2,515,900 km². Half of the water in the CSLME is deeper than 3,600m, and 75% is deeper than 1,800m (Richards and Bohnsack, 1990). Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America (129,494 km² - Caribbean and Pacific water area 9,240 km²). The Caribbean coastline is 450 km long (INPESCA 1990) and the continental shelf (the largest in Central America) has many coral reefs. Most of the coral cays are used as campsites by turtlemen, lobstermen, and recently pirate fishermen for other countries. The near shore coast of Nicaragua is characterized by shallow entrances. The Nicaraguan continental shelf is bordered by two deep basins: the Colombian Basin to the east and the Cayman Trough to the north
Panama
The Pacific coastline of both Costa Rica and Panama is strongly affected by extremes of water temperature associated with warm El Niño (~33°C) events and more frequent cool upwelling episodes (~15°C). These restrict offshore reef development in many areas, while terrestrial runoff greatly restricts reef development on mainland coasts. In general, reef development is sporadic and mostly at point locations around offshore islands. Most reefs in this region consist of shallow (less than 10 meters) sub-tidal Pocillopora banks bound together with calcareous algae, while Porites lobata is also a major reef builder in Costa Rica. Species diversity is low, but 23 species of hermatypic corals have been recorded on the Pacific side of Panama, and 18 in Costa Rica. Despite their simple community structure and low diversity, coral cover on these small reefs can be very high, reaching over 90 percent on healthy reefs.
US Florida
About half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; about two and a half times the size of Western Europe mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii
Venezuela
Venezuela is a large country with a long, north-facing coastline delimiting the southeastern edge of the Caribbean Sea. In the east this coastline is dominated by the vast delta of the Orinoco River, which carries considerable quantities of freshwater into the Western Atlantic, just south of the island of Trinidad. Further west, the coastline generally has higher relief, and there are numerous smaller rivers. Coral reef development is thus highly limited by freshwater and sediment runoff, and nearshore coral reefs are scarce. Small reef systems exist at Morrocoy and coral communities in Mochima. Between these two locations there are a few other small reef developments, for example in San Esteban, Turiamo Bay and Ciénaga de Ocumare Bay. The reefs in the Parque Nacional Morrocoy occur along the seaward margins of small cays at the mouth of the Golfete de Guare (Borracho and Cayo Sombrero) and to the south of Punta Tucacas.
Information provided by ICLARM - The World Fish Center, with support from the International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN). ReefBase: Oliver, J. and M. Noordeloos. Editors. 2002. ReefBase: A Global Information System on Coral Reefs.
5 May 2008 at 3:24am
Submersible cameras offer a close look at the struggling habitats, helping scientists gauge how best to protect them. Whirring over a sun-streaked patch of tropical seafloor, a submersible equipped with cameras is helping provide the most detai...
7 May 2008 at 4:19pm
After an exhaustive six hour battle, the Calgary Fire Department says they have managed to extinguish a blaze in the northeast. Firefighters arrived at the fire in Coral Springs just before four o'clock ...
5 May 2008 at 10:18am
Coral reef degradation could result in annual losses of US$100 million to $300 million to the Caribbean tourism industry by 2015, marine scientists are predicting.
7 May 2008 at 1:42pm
The investigation into what sparked a northeast house fire will begin Wednesday. Firefighters arrived at a home on Coral Reef Close Northeast around 4 p.m. on Tuesday.
Belize 
Brazil 
Colombia 
Costa Rica 
Ecuador 
Honduras 
Mexico 
Nicaragua 
Panama 
US Florida
Venezuela 
