Mesoamerican Reef (MAR)

The Mesoamerican Reef (MAR) is a globally important and highly productive area, with vast biodiversity resources and amazing spatial and social diversity, which make this an important region of the world. The Tulum Declaration, signed by the Heads of State of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico in 1997, lead to a campaign for sustainable management of the region consistent with the economic well-being of the communities whose livelihood depends on the natural resources.

The Mesoamerican Reef region encompasses 1000 km of coastline,from the northeast end of the Yucatán peninsula, Mexico, to the Bay Islands, in Honduras. It includes the coast ofthe Mexican state of Quintana Roo, the coast of Belize and Guatemala and the north coast of Honduras to Cabo Camarón and Swan Islands. This region of high biodiversity includes barrier, fringing and patch reefs and a highly associated system of mangroves, coastal lagoons, estuaries, seagrass beds, beaches, rivers and coastal wetlands. Almost two million people live in the ecoregion and almost one million depend directly on the integrity and resilience of the reef in order to maintain their lifestyles, and the national economies of the four countries. Members of different indigenous groups inhabit the region, including Garifunas, Kekchi, Maya, Mopán and Creole.

The Mesoamerican Reef contains more than 66 species of stony corals and more than 500 species of fish, forming one of the most diverse coral reef systems in the Western Hemisphere. The shallow reefs are distinguished by the presence of Elkhorn coral, and massive corals dominate the deepest reefs. Four atolls are prominent in its geography, including Banco Chinchorro in Mexico, and Turneffe Island, Lighthouse Reef and Glovers Reef, in Belize. The bays and coastal lagoons as well as the lagoon reef include extensive seagrass meadows, while mangroves border multiple rivers, lagoons and islands. Seagrass beds and mangroves serve as important nursery areas for species of commercial importance such as queen conch, spiny lobster, grouper and snapper, and for other species of recreational importance such as snook, tarpon, and bonefish. World Heritage Sites have been declared in the ecoregion, including the biosphere reserves of Sian Ka’an and Banco Chinchorro, and the barrier reef of Belize.