Vulnerability of inter-tropical littoral areas

The Terminos Lagoon is a 2000-km(2) wide coastal lagoon linked to the largest river catchment in Mesoamerica. Economic development, together with its ecological importance, led the Mexican government to pronounce the Terminos Lagoon and its surrounding wetlands as a Federal protected area for flora and fauna in 1994. It is characterized by small temperature fluctuations, but with two distinct seasons (wet and dry) that control the biological, geochemical, and physical processes and components. This paper presents a review of the available information about the Terminos Lagoon. The review shows that the diversity of benthic communities is structured by the balance between marine and riverine inputs and that this structuration strongly influences the benthic metabolism and its coupling with the biogeochemistry of the water column. The paper also presents many specific drivers and recommendations for a long-term environmental survey strategy in the context of the expected Global Change in the Central American region.