The Mexican Caribbean is recognized worldwide due to its spectacular reef scenic values, high biodiversity, tourism-economic incomes, and current social pressure drivers. Thus, oceanographic research in this important area is needed. At El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR-Chetumal), a Public Research Center of the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT), scientific research has been undertaken in the region for more than 15 years with the aim of generating a long-term monitoring base that allows the characterization of the marine ecosystems.

Such is the case of the Arrecifes de Xcalak National Park, which includes oceanographic monitoring to understand better the physical processes. The activities include the installation of specialized oceanographic instrumentation for a continuous recording of ocean currents, temperature, salinity, and sea level, in which the support and services provided by XTC Dive Center to the scientific research are gratefully acknowledged.

Data collected from the deployed instruments help for a better understanding and description of the ocean and coastal dynamics, which are of paramount relevance in terms of the global challenges such as massive sargassum arrival, acidification of the oceans, fisheries management, reproductive aggregation sites, and coastal integrated conservation.

For more information:

Principal investigator. Laura Carrillo, Ph.D., Physical Oceanographer and Researcher at El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Department for the Observation and Study of the Earth, Atmosphere and Ocean.

lcarrillo@ecosur.mx

https://www.ecosur.mx/grupo/oceanografia/

Collaborators:

Mariana Callejas

Juan Carlos Alcérreca

Oscar Reyes