LACs described species (%)
Index value (1970 = 1)
Chapter 2: State and Trends
Coastal and marine ecosystems
The coral reefs of the Caribbean continue to show signs of decline and degradation. It has been documented that most of the reefs in the region (over 75 per cent) are facing serious threat (Burke et al. 2011) (Figure 2.5.7). A study by Jackson et al. (2014), based on 88 sample points, found average coral cover declined in the Caribbean from 34.8 per cent to 16.3 per cent between 1970 and 2011.
A recent evaluation on the condition of the Mesoamerican Reef (the largest barrier reef in the northern hemisphere and the second largest barrier reef in the world) has indicated signs of improvement (Kramer et al. 2015) (Figure 2.5.8) Before 2006, the Mesoamerican reef was seriously affected by events of coral bleaching and hurricanes (Wilkinson 2008). However, between 2006 and 2014, the Reef Health Index improved slightly (from 2.3 to 2.8; values approaching 5 denote healthy reefs), due to increases in coral cover and the biomass of commercial fish species.
According to the Global Forest Resource Assessment 2015 (FAO 2015c) currently there are about 46 000 square kilometres of mangrove forests in LAC region. Most is found in coast of the Amazon countries, where Brazil accounts for about 70 per cent or the mangrove area in the sub-region. In Mesoamerica, most mangroves are found in Mexico, and in the Caribbean, Cuba is the country with most mangrove forests. All three sub-regions show a slight increase of mangrove forest area, due to both a natural increase and a more accurate recent estimate. However, it has also been reported that along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Mesoamerica, as many as 40 per cent of mangroves species are threatened with extinction (Polidoro et al. 2010).
With respect to fisheries, available data indicate that the Pacific fisheries, which are characterised by considerable oscillations, show no major changes in the state of fishing of stocks (FAO 2014a). In the Southwest Atlantic about 55 per cent of the monitored fish stocks are at biologically unsustainable levels, and 45 per cent within biologically
Figure 2.5.8: Neotropical Living Planet Index 1970-2010. Dashed lines represent confidence limits.
0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2
0.2 0
Year Source: McRae et al. 2014
Figure 2.5.9: LAC´s threatened species after IUCN, 2015.
100 90 80 70 60
50 40 30 20 10 0
Mammals Source: IUCN 2015
sustainable limits (FAO 2014a). In the case of the Caribbean fisheries, trends show overall declines in fish stocks (FAO 2014a). Overfishing has been reported as one of the most
111 Birds Threatened Amphibians Not threatened
1970 1972 1974
1976 1978
1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990
1992 1994
1996 1998
2000 2002
2007 2006
2008 2010
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