Belize Barrier Reef
Encyclopedia
The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reef
s straddling the coast of Belize
, roughly 300 metres (984.3 ft) offshore in the north and 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) in the south within the country limits. The Belize Barrier Reef is a 300 kilometres (186.4 mi) long section of the 900 kilometres (559.2 mi) long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System
, which is continuous from Cancún
on the northeast tip of the Yucatán Peninsula
through the Riviera Maya
up to Honduras
making it one of the largest coral reef systems in the world after the Great Barrier Reef
in Australia
and the New Caledonia Barrier Reef
. It is Belize's top tourist destination popular for scuba diving and snorkeling and attracting almost half of its 260,000 visitors, and is vital to its fishing industry.
Charles Darwin
described it as "the most remarkable reef in the West Indies" in 1842.
s of the world:
With 90% of the reef still needing to be researched, it is estimated that only 10% of all species have been discovered.
s, 450 cay
s, and three atoll
s. It totals 960 square kilometres (370.7 sq mi) in area, including:
Because of its exceptional natural beauty, significant on-going ecological and biological processes, and the fact that it contains the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity (criteria VII, IX, and X), the Reserve System has been designated as a World Heritage Site
since 1996.
Despite these protective measures, the reef is under threat from oceanic pollution as well as uncontrolled tourism, shipping, and fishing. The main threats are considered to be hurricanes along with global warming and the resulting increase in ocean temperatures, which cause coral bleaching
. It is claimed by scientists that over 40% of Belize's coral reef has been damaged since 1998.
The Belize Barrier Reef has been affected by two mass-bleaching events. The first mass bleaching occurred in 1995, with an estimated mortality of 10 percent of coral colonies, according to a report by the Coastal Zone Management Institute in Belize. In 1997 and 1998, a second mass-bleaching event occurred, coinciding with devastation effected by hurricane Mitch. Biologists observed a 48 percent reduction in live coral cover across the Belize reef system.
Usually, it is hard to distinguish whether the reason for coral bleaching is human activities or natural reasons such as storms or bacterial fluctuations. But in the case of the Belize Barrier Reef, many factors which make the distinction difficult don’t apply. Human population in this area is much more sparse than the corresponding areas near other coral reefs, so the human activity and pollution are much lower compared to other coral reefs and the Belize reef system is in a much more enclosed area.
When coral bleaching occurs, a large part of the coral dies, and the remaining part of the ecosystem begins the process of repairing the damage. But the chances of recovery is low, as corals that are bleached become much more vulnerable to disease. Disease often kills more corals than the bleaching event itself. With continuous bleaching, the coral reef will have little to no chance of recovery.
Coral reef
Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...
s straddling the coast of Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
, roughly 300 metres (984.3 ft) offshore in the north and 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) in the south within the country limits. The Belize Barrier Reef is a 300 kilometres (186.4 mi) long section of the 900 kilometres (559.2 mi) long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System
Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System
The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System stretches over 1000 km from Isla Contoy at the tip of the Yucatán Peninsula down to the Bay Islands of Honduras...
, which is continuous from Cancún
Cancún
Cancún is a city of international tourism development certified by the UNWTO . Located on the northeast coast of Quintana Roo in southern Mexico, more than 1,700 km from Mexico City, the Project began operations in 1974 as Integrally Planned Center, a pioneer of FONATUR Cancún is a city of...
on the northeast tip of the Yucatán Peninsula
Yucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula, in southeastern Mexico, separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico, with the northern coastline on the Yucatán Channel...
through the Riviera Maya
Riviera Maya
Riviera Maya, also known as the Mayan Riviera, is a tourism district following the coastal Highway 307 which parallels the Caribbean coastline of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, located on the eastern portion of the Yucatán Peninsula...
up to Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
making it one of the largest coral reef systems in the world after the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the New Caledonia Barrier Reef
New Caledonia Barrier Reef
The New Caledonia Barrier Reef is located in New Caledonia in the South Pacific, and is the second-longest double-barrier coral reef in the world, after Australia's Great Barrier Reef....
. It is Belize's top tourist destination popular for scuba diving and snorkeling and attracting almost half of its 260,000 visitors, and is vital to its fishing industry.
Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
described it as "the most remarkable reef in the West Indies" in 1842.
Species
The Belize Barrier Reef is home to a large diversity of plants and animals, and is one of the most diverse ecosystemEcosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
s of the world:
- 70 hard coral species
- 36 soft coralAlcyonaceaThe Alcyonacea, or the soft corals are an order of corals which do not produce calcium carbonate skeletons. Soft corals contain minute, spiny skeletal elements called sclerites. Aside from their scientific utility in species identification, sclerites give these corals some degree of support and...
species - 500 species of fish
- hundreds of invertebrateInvertebrateAn invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
species
With 90% of the reef still needing to be researched, it is estimated that only 10% of all species have been discovered.
Environmental protection
A large portion of the reef is protected by the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, which includes seven marine reserveMarine reserve
For the United States Marine Corps Reserve see: Marine Forces ReserveA marine reserve is an area of the sea which has legal protection against fishing or development. This is to be distinguished from a marine park, but there is some overlap in usage...
s, 450 cay
Cay
A cay , also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island formed on the surface of coral reefs. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans , where they provide habitable and agricultural land for hundreds of thousands of people...
s, and three atoll
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
s. It totals 960 square kilometres (370.7 sq mi) in area, including:
- Glover's Reef Marine ReserveGlover's ReefGlover's Reef is a partially submerged atoll located off the southern coast of Belize, approximately 45 kilometres from the mainland. It forms part of the outermost boundary of the Belize Barrier Reef.-Topography:...
- Great Blue HoleGreat Blue HoleThe Great Blue Hole is a large submarine sinkhole off the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is circular in shape, over across and deep...
- Half Moon Caye Natural MonumentHalf Moon CayeHalf Moon Caye is an island and natural monument in Belize....
- Hol Chan Marine ReserveHol Chan Marine ReserveHol Chan Marine Reserve is a marine reserve close to Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, off the coast of Belize. It covers approximately 18 km² of coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forest...
- Cays include: Ambergris CayeAmbergris CayeAmbergris Caye, pronounced "am-BER-gris", is the largest island of Belize located northeast of the country in the Caribbean Sea. Though administered as part of the Belize District, the closest point on the mainland is part of the Corozal District....
, Caye CaulkerCaye CaulkerCaye Caulker is a small limestone coral island off the coast of Belize in the Caribbean Sea measuring about by less than . The town on the island is known by the name Caye Caulker Village...
, Caye ChapelCaye ChapelCaye Chapel is a small island in Belize, north-northeast of Belize City and south of Caye Caulker.In comparison to other typically rural cayes and islands in the vicinity, it is an exclusive area, featuring among others an 18 hole golf course, clubhouse and conference facilities.There is...
, St. George's CayeSt. George's CayeSt. George's Caye is an island in the Caribbean Sea, eight miles east of Belize City. It is part of the Belize District of Belize, Central America. As of 2000 St. George's Caye had a permanent population of about 20 people....
, English Caye, Rendezvous Caye, Gladden Caye, Ranguana Caye, Long CayeLong CayeLong Caye is an island 40 miles off the coast of Belize. The Caye is only 8 miles away from the Great Blue Hole and is located in the same atoll Lighthouse Reef.- External links :*...
, Maho Caye, Blackbird Caye, Three Coner Caye, Northern CayeNorthern CayeNorthern Caye is a small island 50 miles off the coast of Belize. The former Lighthouse Reef Resort catered to scuba diving enthusiasts. The caye is noted for its saltwater crocodiles and snowy egrets....
, Sandbore CayeSandbore CayeSandbore Caye is a very small island 50 miles off the coast of Belize. It has a lighthouse occupied by a keeper and his family. Nearby is the larger island, Northern Caye....
.
Because of its exceptional natural beauty, significant on-going ecological and biological processes, and the fact that it contains the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity (criteria VII, IX, and X), the Reserve System has been designated as a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
since 1996.
Despite these protective measures, the reef is under threat from oceanic pollution as well as uncontrolled tourism, shipping, and fishing. The main threats are considered to be hurricanes along with global warming and the resulting increase in ocean temperatures, which cause coral bleaching
Coral bleaching
Coral bleaching is the loss of intracellular endosymbionts through either expulsion or loss of algal pigmentation.The corals that form the structure of the great reef ecosystems of tropical seas depend upon a symbiotic relationship with unicellular flagellate protozoa, called zooxanthellae, that...
. It is claimed by scientists that over 40% of Belize's coral reef has been damaged since 1998.
The Belize Barrier Reef has been affected by two mass-bleaching events. The first mass bleaching occurred in 1995, with an estimated mortality of 10 percent of coral colonies, according to a report by the Coastal Zone Management Institute in Belize. In 1997 and 1998, a second mass-bleaching event occurred, coinciding with devastation effected by hurricane Mitch. Biologists observed a 48 percent reduction in live coral cover across the Belize reef system.
Usually, it is hard to distinguish whether the reason for coral bleaching is human activities or natural reasons such as storms or bacterial fluctuations. But in the case of the Belize Barrier Reef, many factors which make the distinction difficult don’t apply. Human population in this area is much more sparse than the corresponding areas near other coral reefs, so the human activity and pollution are much lower compared to other coral reefs and the Belize reef system is in a much more enclosed area.
When coral bleaching occurs, a large part of the coral dies, and the remaining part of the ecosystem begins the process of repairing the damage. But the chances of recovery is low, as corals that are bleached become much more vulnerable to disease. Disease often kills more corals than the bleaching event itself. With continuous bleaching, the coral reef will have little to no chance of recovery.