Amílcar Leví Cupul-Magaña

Coral Reef Health Indices versus the Biological, Ecological and Functional Diversity of Fish and Coral Assemblages in the Caribbean Sea.

This study evaluated the relationship between the indices known as the Reef Health Index (RHI) and two-dimensional Coral Health Index (2D-CHI) and different representative metrics of biological, ecological and functional diversity of fish and corals in 101 reef sites located across seven zones in the western Caribbean Sea. Species richness and average taxonomic distinctness were used to asses biological estimation; while ecological diversity was evaluated with the indices of Shannon diversity and Pielou´s evenness, as well as by taxonomic diversity and distinctness. Functional diversity considered the number of functional groups, the Shannon diversity and the functional Pielou´s evenness. According to the RHI, 57.15% of the zones were classified as presenting a poor health grade, while 42.85% were in critical grade. Based on the 2D-CHI, 28.5% of the zones were in degraded condition and 71.5% were very degraded. Differences in fish and coral diversity among sites and zones were demonstrated using permutational ANOVAs. Differences between the two health indices (RHI and 2D-CHI) and some indices of biological, ecological and functional diversity of fish and corals were observed; however, only the RHI showed a correlation between the health grades and the species and functional group richness of fish at the scale of sites, and with the species and functional group richness and Shannon diversity of the fish assemblages at the scale of zones. None of the health indices were related to the metrics analyzed for the coral diversity. In general, our study suggests that the estimation of health indices should be complemented with classic community indices, or should at least include diversity indices of fish and corals, in order to improve the accuracy of the estimated health status of coral reefs in the western Caribbean Sea.

Differences in Growth and Calcification Rates in the Reef-Building Coral Porites lobata: The Implications of Morphotype and Gender on Coral Growth

Corals display different growth forms as an adaptive response to both local and global environmental conditions. Despite the importance of morphologic variability on corals, growth and calcification rates of different coral morphotypes have been poorly recorded in the Eastern Pacific. The purpose of this study was to compare annual extension rate (cm yr-1), skeletal density (g cm-3), calcification rate (g cm-2 yr-1) and tissue thickness (mm) of males and females colonies in three different morphotypes of the common reef-building coral Porites lobata; columnar, massive, and free-living (corallith) forms. The results show significant differences in all 4-growth parameters between morphotypes over a 6-year interval, and also differences between males and females in most morphotypes. Massive colonies presented 15-33% faster annual rates compared with columnar and free-living. Male colonies showed 30-40% faster annual rates than females for both columnar and corallith morphologies. These data exhibit the extensive plasticity of this species and highlight the fact that each morphotype x gender group produced a different physiological response to environmental conditions. Therefore, these information reveal that P. lobata from the Eastern Tropical Pacific develops different morphologies to allow it to maintain coral species population, characteristics that enhance the species possibility to further its distribution across the reef-framework

Structural and environmental effects on an assemblage of echinoderms associated with a coral community

Echinoderms are a conspicuous assemblage associated with coral communities, which provides them with food, shelter, and nursery areas. Temporal and spatial changes in environmental conditions may modify their density and composition, which furthermore may affect the structure of the coral community. In order to identify the response of echinoderm composition to environmental fluctuations, variations in the density were evaluated at spatial and temporal levels from 2011–2014 in Islas Marietas National Park, a National Protected Area located off the Mexican Pacific coast, which harbors the most important coral and echinoderm community in the region. The results showed that the species Diadema mexicanum, Centrostephanus coronatus, and Eucidaris thouarsii, were dominant. Differences between areas off the islands were observed, as Isla Redonda showed the highest values (1.31u2009±u20090.15 in. m2, S¯

Ophiuroidea (Echinodermata) from the Central Mexican Pacific: an updated checklist including new distribution records

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Restoration of a degraded coral reef using a natural remediation process: A case study from a Central Mexican Pacific National Park

= 7.74u2009±u20090.17) associated with high heterogeneity and availability of food resources. Isla Larga had the lowest density (0.89u2009±u20090.7 in. m2) and richness (S¯

Primer registro del género Clunio (Diptera: Chironomidae) asociado a las comunidades coralinas de islas Marietas, México

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