The exotic Indo-West-Pacific species, Ficopomatus uschakovi (Polychaeta, Serpulidae) is recorded for the first time in the Tropical Eastern Pacific from two sites in La Encrucijada Biosphere Reserve, Chiapas, a coastal lagoon in the Pacific south of Mexico. The means of dispersal of this serpulid species still remains unclear, as the nearest port (Puerto Chiapas) is 70 km to the south, and ther...

Managing receiving-water quality, ecosystem health and ecosystem service delivery is challenging in regions where extreme rainfall and runoff events occur episodically, confounding and often intensifying land-degradation impacts. We synthesize the approaches used in river, reservoir and coastal water management in the event-driven subtropics of Australia, and the scientific research underpinnin...

Accurate and timely surf forecasts communicated in a clear, concise manner are essential in planning nearshore activities. In Hawaii, a large population of recreational enthusiasts comprised of both residents and visitors use surf forecasts on a daily basis. Forecasts are vital to commercial ventures, coastal engineers, ecosystem and geophysical researchers, and governmental coastal planners in...

New coastal and marine management strategies have recently been developed in many countries and regions. From an ecosystem approach perspective, the aim of such strategies is the maintenance of ecosystem integrity while enabling the sustainable use of ecosystem goods and services. There is, however, a need for harmonized definitions and standardized processes to deal not only with the interjuri...

Diatoms dominate phytoplankton communities in the well-mixed coastal and upwelling regions. Coastal diatoms are often exposed to both aquaculture pollution and eutrophication. But how these exposures influence on coastal ecosystem functions are unknown. To examine these influences, a coastal centric diatom, Conticribra weissflogii was maintained at different concentrations of nitrate (N) and/or...

Coastal and shelf environments support high levels of biodiversity that are vital in mediating ecosystem processes, but they are also subject to noise associated with mounting levels of offshore human activity. This has the potential to alter the way in which species interact with their environment, compromising the mediation of important ecosystem properties. Here, we show that exposure to und...

Shoreline armoring is prevalent around the world with unprecedented human population growth and urbanization along coastal habitats. Armoring structures, such as riprap and bulkheads, that are built to prevent beach erosion and protect coastal infrastructure from storms and flooding can cause deterioration of habitats for migratory fish species, disrupt aquatic-terrestrial connectivity, and red...

Predicting responses of coastal ecosystems to altered sea surface temperatures (SST) associated with global climate change, requires knowledge of demographic responses of individual species. Body size is an excellent metric because it scales strongly with growth and fecundity for many ectotherms. These attributes can underpin demographic as well as community and ecosystem level processes, provi...

A variety of ecosystem services classification systems and mapping approaches are available in the scientific and technical literature, which needs to be selected and adapted when applied to complex territories (e.g. in the interface between water and land, estuary and sea). This paper provides a framework for addressing ecosystem services in complex coastal regions. The roadmap comprises the d...