Ocean & Coastal Management 86 (2013) 22e32 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Ocean & Coastal Management journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ocecoaman The Reef Corridor of the Southwest Gulf of Mexico: Challenges for its management and conservation Leonardo Ortiz-Lozano a,*, Horacio Pérez-España b,c, Alejandro Granados-Barba a, Carlos González-Gándara d, Ana Gutiérrez-Velázquez e, Javier Martos d a Análisis y Síntesis de Zonas Costeras, Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Pesquerías, Universidad Veracruzana, Av. Hidalgo #617, Col. Río Jamapa 94290, Boca del Río, Veracruz, Mexico b Arrecifes Coralinos, Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Pesquerías, Universidad Veracruzana, Av. Hidalgo #617, Col. Río Jamapa 94290, Boca del Río, Veracruz, Mexico c Centro de Investigación de Ciencias Ambientales, Universidad Autónoma del Carmen, Av. Laguna de Términos s/n, Col. Renovación 2da sección, CP 24155, Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche, Mexico d Laboratorio de Arrecifes Coralinos, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Zona Poza Rica Tuxpan, Universidad Veracruzana, Carr. Tuxpan.- Tampico km 7.5, Col. Universitaria, CP 92860, Tuxpan, Veracruz, Mexico e Posgrado. Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Departamento de Ecología y Comportamiento Animal, Apartado Postal 63, Xalapa 91000, Veracruz, Mexico article info abstract Article history: Flow of species and spatial continuity of biological processes between geographically separated areas Available online may be achieved using management tools known as Ecological Corridors (EC). In this paper we propose an EC composed of three highly threatened coral reef systems in the Southwest Gulf of Mexico: Sistema Arrecifal Lobos Tuxpan, Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano and Arrecifes de los Tuxtlas. The proposed EC is supported by the concept of Marine Protected Areas Networks, which highlights the biogeographical and habitat heterogeneity representations as the main criteria to the establishment of this kind of networks. These three reef systems represent the coral biodiversity of the western Gulf of Mexico. Nevertheless there are serious shortcomings in its protection. Under this approach, the challenges that Mexican government will face for management and conservation of this EC are discussed. There is an obvious lack of an adequate legal framework to establish networks of protected areas in Mexico, mainly because national legislation does not consider connectivity as an important factor in the selection of MPA. Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction these ecosystems is within a Marine Protected Area (MPA). How- ever, the number of MPAs and its coverage can be misleading in- One of the most important instruments for in situ protection of dicators of effective conservation of coral areas, since its natural resources and biodiversity has been the establishment of establishment does not warrant the application of good manage- protected areas (Ortiz-Lozano et al., 2009a). These areas, under ment measures and enforcement (Mora et al., 2006; Fraga and different categories of protection, are the basis for international Jesús, 2008). efforts to counter the effects of human development on the envi- Although MPAs are intended to limit human activities, coral ronmental goods and services that they provide. reefs are vulnerable to threats from outside the boundaries of the Coral reefs are one of the marine ecosystems that have provided protected area, such as turbidity and sedimentation (Orpin et al., more goods and services to humans. With a total world area of 2004; James et al., 2005), water pollution (Fabricius, 2005), and approximately 527 000 km2 (Mora et al., 2006), coral reefs have coastal development (Fichez et al., 2005; Mora et al., 2006; Ortiz- been intimately linked to human development and have suffered Lozano, 2012)(Gutiérrez-Ruiz et al., 2011; Ortiz-Lozano, 2012). its consequences (Fitzpatrick and Donaldson, 2007; Hoegh- Also, life cycles and ethology of different reef species may exceed Guldberg et al., 2007). That is why about 20% of the global area of the geographical boundaries of protected areas (Palumbi, 2004)as well as internal ecological processes dominated by the influence of the external areas (McClelland and Valiea, 1998; Miller and Ayre, * Corresponding author. Tel./fax: þ52 229 9567070. 2008), which increases the vulnerability of reefs to the effects of E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] (L. Ortiz-Lozano). anthropogenic impacts. 0964-5691/$ e see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2013.10.006 L. Ortiz-Lozano et al. / Ocean & Coastal Management 86 (2013) 22e32 23 Fig. 1. Reefs Systems of the Southwest Gulf of Mexico: Sistema Arrecifal Lobos Tuxpan (SALT), Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano (SAV) and Arrecifes de los Tuxtlas (AT). For these reasons, it is necessary to analyze MPAs, not only in the establishment of the first Mexican Marine Protected Area terms of individual performance, but in relation to the major re- Network in the Gulf of Mexico. gions that integrate and represent a relevant role in its spatial and temporal permanence (Pressey, 1994; Hansen and Defries, 2007; 2. Reefs of the Gulf of Mexico Ortiz-Lozano et al., 2009a). Ecological corridors (EC) are biological or physical strips con- The Gulf of Mexico is a Large Marine Ecosystem (Sherman, 1991) necting areas and allowing movement of species (Van der Windt with a mixture of ecological characteristics of temperate and and Swart, 2008). EC have become a concept for integrating, un- tropical environments. It is an inland sea whose basin of der a management perspective, areas that despite being 1.5 Â 106 km2 (Bryant et al., 1991) receives discharges from rivers geographically separated from each other, maintain a flow of spe- that led to the formation of environmentally and biologically cies that generates connections between areas within it. diverse coastal systems. The aim of this manuscript is to present the Southwest Gulf of Coral reefs require particular oceanographic and environmental Mexico reefs as a marine ecological corridor. Here we show the conditions such as shallow, oligotrophic, and warm (>20 C) ma- importance of these reefs and the main stressors to which they are rine waters, with an optimum between 26 and 28 C, with salinities exposed. We explain the criteria to account this ecological corridor of 33e36 ups, minimal turbidity and sedimentation, well lit and under the figure of a network of marine protected areas. with low wave energy (Hubbard, 1997; Carricart-Ganivet, 2004). To arrive at this proposal, we conducted a qualitative approach However, in the Gulf of Mexico, some reefs developed despite the at different spatial scales. First, we considered the large region conditions of turbidity, sedimentation, temperature and organic which includes the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). The GoM was divided inputs, produced by natural disturbances and human activities according to their geological characteristics and the presence of (Salas-Pérez and Granados-Barba, 2008; Salas-Pérez and Arenas, reef systems. With this, we identified the factors that group these reef systems into two sets, according to the type of continental shelf, either carbonated or sedimentary. At a smaller spatial scale Table 1 Scleractinean Coral Species in Gulf of Mexico reef areas. for sedimentary platform reefs, we integrate information about the presence of scleractinian coral species, the main environmental Reef system Number of Source coral species characteristics, the relationship with human uses and the pressures to which they are subjected. This information was obtained from Flower Garden Banks 23 Aronson et al., 2005 published data for different reef systems and expert knowledge in Sistema Arrecifal 28 Horta-Puga et al., 2007 Lobos Tuxpan each of the areas. Evidence of connectivity between different reef Sistema Arrecifal 38 Horta-Puga et al., 2007, this research systems was collected from the scientific literature, considering Veracruzano existing data on benthic organisms. We must emphasize that the Arrecifes de Los 20 Pérez-España et al., 2008; CONANP, 2009 main purpose of this paper is to set the conceptual basis to coor- Tuxtlas Banco de Campeche 44 Horta-Puga et al., 2007, this research dinate research efforts and management of this Reef Corridor, and 24 L. Ortiz-Lozano et al. / Ocean & Coastal Management 86 (2013) 22e32 Table 2 (>150 km width). It is one of the few regions in the world showing a Scleractinean Coral Species in the Southwest Gulf of Mexico reef systems. Sistema sedimentary gradient from terrigenous to biogenic materials (car- Arrecifal Lobos Tuxpan (SALT), Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano (SAV), Arrecifes de Los bonate). Because of these characteristics, reef systems with variable Tuxtlas (AT). The closest reef system, Banco de Campeche reefs (ABC), is included as an external reference. Sources: Horta-Puga et al., 2007; Pérez-España et al., 2008; morphology and development are found (Heilprin, 1890; Lara et al., CONANP, 2009; *Perez-España personal communication. 1992; Carricart-Ganivet and Horta-Puga, 1993; Jordán-Dahlgren, # Family Species SALT SAV AT ABC 2002). The environmental heterogeneity and biological complexity of 1 Acroporidae Acropora cervicornis 1111 the Gulf of Mexico is reflected in the shelf off the coast of Veracruz, 2 Acropora palmata 1111 w e < 3 Agariciidae Agaricia agaricites 1111 which is narrow ( 6 33 km), shallow ( 70 m) and sinuous, with 4 Agaricia fragilis 1111 complex topography due to the presence of reefs,