The rocky reefs found in the Gulf of California and the Mexican Pacific are home to a large diversity of invertebrate and fish species. These ecosystems are critical habitats for commercially important species that sustain the livelihoods of thousands of families. Rocky reefs are also important for the tourism industry since they are attractive sites for diving and and snorkeling.

Scientists are generating data to support resource management and improve public policy designed to protect rocky reefs to ensure a sustainable future for these ecosystems.

Climate change has catalyzed a series of environmental changes in the ocean which include changes in species’ distribution and abundance, increases in water temperature, frequency of storms, among others.

Data generated by Gulf of California Marine Program collaborators is improving our understanding of how rocky reefs function as we search for solutions to the environmental challenges we are facing.

TIMELINE

1998

The first Rocky Reef Monitoring campaign was launched under the leadership of Scripps Institution of Oceanography and with the collaboration of the UABCS.

2002

An evaluation of rocky reefs in the Gulf of California is carried out and a proposal to create a network of 13 marine reserves is published.

2006

Researchers travel to the Revillagigedo Islands on board the Nautilus Explorer to monitor the reefs and establish an ecological baseline for the archipelago.

2009

Cientists estimate that fish biomas in Cabo Pulmo National Park increased 463% in 10 years.

2010

The CBMC, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC Riverside and UABCS travelled to Islas Marías on board the Rocío del Mar from November 13-23.

2014

The GCMP published the monitoring protocol used by scientists to study rocky reefs.

2014

The GCMP launched dataMares to promote open access data, generated through the monitoring program.

2016

Under the leadership of the CBMC, scientists travelled to Revillagigedo to monitor reefs from March 30 to April 8.

2017

After visiting the Revillagigedo islands on the Sea Hunter, a multinational team of scientists published a report that supported a change in category for this MPA to National Park.

2018

CBMC and Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientists visit Islas Marías once again to monitor the reefs.

2019

The CBMC, SIO, Pristine Seas, Mares Mexicanos, ECOSUR, UADY and the Universidad Veracruzana visited Arrecife Alacranes on the Caribbean Kraken from August 7-11.

2021

The CBMC coordinated a research team with scientists from Scripps Institution of Oceanography and UNAM’s Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (ICMyL) during a monitoring trip to Banco Chinchorro from June 28 through July 8.

NUMERALIA:

RECORDS IN
THE DATABASE

NÚMERO DE
REGISTROS

SPECIES
RECORDED

NÚMERO
DE ESPECIES

ORGANISMS COUNTED
AND MEASURED

NÚMERO DE INDIVIDUOS
CONTADOS Y MEDIDOS

TRANSECTS
COMPLETED

NÚMERO DE
TRANSECTOS

HOURS SPENT
UNDERWATER

NÚMERO DE HORAS
BAJO EL AGUA

REGION 1

GRANDES ISLAS

REGION 2

SANTA ROSALÍA-BAHÍA CONCEPCIÓN

REGION 3

SAN BASILIO-LORETO-CORREDOR

REGION 4

LA PAZ-LA VENTANA

REGION 5

CABO PULMO-CABO SAN LUCAS

REGION 6

ISLAS MARÍAS-BAHÍA BANDERAS

REGION 7

REVILLAGIGEDO

REGION 8

IXTAPA-HUATULCO

REGION 9

ALACRANES-BAJOS DEL NORTE

GRANDES ISLAS

RELATIVE BIOMASS

Refers to the biomass for each trophic group with respect to the total biomass; it is expressed as a percentage.

41 SITES MONITORED

monitoreados

GRANDES ISLAS

RICHNESS

Total number of species in a type of a specific habitat, ecosystem, area or region.

RICHNESS TOTAL

188

INVERTEBRATES
AND FISHES

GRANDES ISLAS

TRANSECTS

TRANSECTS

DIVERS

METHODOLOGY

THE VALUE OF ROCKY REEFS

In addition to their biological and ecological importance, rocky reefs provide ecosystem services that benefit other ecosystems, species and humans that depend on them.

ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

Fisheries

Many of the species targeted by fishing fleets need rocky reefs at some point during their life cycle. Rocky reefs are important sites for spawning aggregations, they are critical habitats for juveniles and are feeding sites for many other species.

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FISHERIES IN MEXICO

Tourism

Rocky reefs are priority areas for the diving industry. Scientists estimated that Mexico’s diving industry generated approximately 725 MDD per year.

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DIVE ATLAS

Storm protection

Shallow reefs, usually located near the coast, form barriers that absorb most of the energy from the waves and water surge during storms and hurricanes.

Carbon sequestration

Some species that live on rocky reefs, like corals, mollusks that form shells and even algae, help remove dissolved carbon from the water by absorbing it and forming calcareous structures.

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dataGraphic Blue Carbon

CONSULTA LOS METADATOS

SOLICITA DATOS

REFERENCIAS

• Aburto-Oropeza O, Erisman B, Galland GR, Mascareñas-Osorio I, Sala E, Ezcurra E (2011) Large Recovery of Fish Biomass in a No-Take Marine Reserve. PLoS ONE 6(8): e23601.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0023601

• Aburto-Oropeza, O. E. Ezcurra, J. Moxley, A. Sánchez-Rodríguez, I. Mascareñas-Osorio, C. Sánchez-Ortiz, B. Erisman and T. Ricketts. (2015). A framework to assess the health of rocky reefs linking geomorphology, community assemblage, and fish biomass. Ecological Indicators. Volume 52: 353-361.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.12.006

• Favoretto, F., C. Sánchez, O. Aburto-Oropeza. (2022). Warming and marine heatwaves tropicalize rocky reefs communities in the Gulf of California. Progress in Oceanography. Volume 206: 102838.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.583056

• Favoretto, F., C. Sánchez, O. Aburto-Oropeza. (2022). Warming and marine heatwaves tropicalize rocky reefs communities in the Gulf of California. Progress in Oceanography. Volume 206: 102838.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2022.102838

• Rodriguez, A. S, Báez, M. M, Aburto-Oropeza, O., Arango, G. H, Masacareñas-Osorio, I., & Erisman, B. (2014). Protocolo de Monitoreo: Para Ambientes Marinos Costeros. UC San Diego: Aburto Lab.

https://escholarship.org/uc/item/23f1404c

• Sala, E., O. Aburto-Oropeza, G. Paredes, I. Parra, J.C. Barrera, P.K. Dayton. (2002) A general model for designing networks of marine reserves. Science 298 (5600), 1991-1993. DOI: 10.1126/science.107528

• Sánchez-Rodríguez, A., Aburto-Oropeza, O., Erisman, B., Jiménez-Esquivel, V.M., Hinojosa-Arango, G. (2015). Rocky Reefs: Preserving Biodiversity for the Benefit of the Communities in the Aquarium of the World. In: Narchi, N., Price, L. (eds) Ethnobiology of Corals and Coral Reefs. Ethnobiology. Springer, Cham.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23763-3_11
dataMares Metadatos
Última actualización: 04/01/2023
Título del Proyecto: Monitoreo Ecológico en el Golfo de California y costa del Pacífico
Resumen: Los datos ecológicos sobre peces e invertebrados se colectaron bajo el liderazgo del Centro para la Biodiversidad Marina y la Conservación A.C. (CBMC) como parte del programa de monitoreo ecológico de largo plazo del Programa Marino del Golfo de California. Este esfuerzo incluye a científicos y estudiantes de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur in La Paz, BCS. El programa de monitoreo se ha implementado desde 1998 y ha resultado en la serie de tiempo más larga con datos del Golfo de California. La base de datos incluye información colectada en: Bahía de los Ángeles (2008, 2009, 2010, 2016), Región de las Grandes Islas (2008, 2009, 2010 and 2016) en Baja California; Santa Rosalia (2009, 2010, 2016, 2021, 2022), San Basilio (2019, 2021-2022), Loreto (1998-2019, 2021-2022), El Corredor (2013-2019), La Paz (1998-2019,2022), La Ventana (2013-2018), Cabo Pulmo (1999, 2009-2022), y Cabo San Lucas (1998-2000, 2009-2019, 2021-2022) en Baja California Sur; Islas Marías (2010, 2018), Bahia Banderas (2013), Nayarit; Revillagigedo (2006, 2016, 2017,2021), Colima; Ixtapa Zihuatanejo (2017), Guerrero; Huatulco (2016), Oaxaca. Esta base de datos incluye información de 216 especies de peces y 244 especies de invertebrados.
Key words: monitoreo, peces, invertebrados, transectos, arrecifes rocosos
Lead investigator: Ismael Mascareñas
Contact information: ismael.mascarenas@gocmarineprogram.org
Data Manager: Santiago Dominguez-Sanchez
Usage Rights & Copyrights: Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Octavio Aburto Oropeza, Carlos Sanchez Ortiz
How to cite: Mascareñas-Osorio, Ismael; Aburto-Oropeza, Octavio; Sanchez Ortiz, Carlos (2018). Monitoreo ecológico de arrecifes en el Golfo de California y océano Pacífico. En dataMares: Ecological Monitoring. UC San Diego Library Digital Collections. https://doi.org/10.6075/J0KH0KJ3
Geographic Area: Golfo de California, Pacífico Mexicano
Collection dates: 1998-2022
Embargo:
Primary data sofware or service: Excel
Dataset name: em_gc_ecological_monitoring
Methods: Los datos se generan empleando metodologías estandarizadas adaptadas para el programa de monitoreo de largo plazo del Programa Marino del Golfo de California. Los buzos utilizan transectos como guia (peces=50m x 5m; invertebrados=30m x 1m) durante el monitoreo. Peces: Los transectos se colocan a 20m y 5m de profundidad. Si el sitio de monitoreo no cuenta con fondos rocosos más allá de los 5m de profundidad, esta es la única profundidad que se monitorea. Los peces se cuentan sobre el transecto contando primero los peces demeersales y, en la segunda vuelta, se cuentan los peces bentónicos y crípticos. El área monitoreada total es de 250m cuadrados. Las tallas de los peces también se registra y, junto con información de bibliografía, se utiliza para calcular la biomasa.Invertebrados: Los transectos se colocan a 5m y 20 m de profundidad y se registran las especies sobre el transecto. El buzo cuenta macroinvertebrados epibentónicos (mayores a 2cm) y anota la talla estimada.
Coordinate system: WGS 1984
Additional Notes:
Nombre de Pestaña: base
Campo Descripción
Etiqueta Peces o Invertebrados
Año Año de muestreo
Mes Mes de muestreo
Día Día de muestreo
IDArrecife Identificador de arrecife asociado a la tabla Arrecifes Reef
IDEspecie Identificador de Especie asociado a la tabla de especies
Profundidad Profundidad del transecto
Transecto Número del transecto
Area Área cubierta con el transecto
Talla Talla de la especie registrada
Cantidad Número de individuos de la especie registrada por un buzo
Año.Real Año real del muestreo. Se refiere a muestreos realizados con retraso por razones climáticas (por ejemplo, huracanes); solo apllica a datos de febrero y marzo del 2015.
Nombre de Pestaña: Arrecifes
Campo Descripción
IDArrecife Identificador del arrecife
Región Región en donde se localiza el arrecife
Isla Isla o estado mexicano donde se localiza el arrecife
Arrecife Nombre del arrecife
Habitat Tipo de hábitat
Latitud Latitud con 6 decimales with 6 decimals
Longitud Longitud con 6 decimales
CONCAT Etiqueta que integra al arrecife y el hábitat
Nombre de Pestaña: Especies
Campo Descripción
IDEspecie Identificador de la especie
Etiqueta Pez o invertebrado
Especie Nombre de la especie
Phylum Phylum
Taxa1 Especificación taxonómica
Taxa2 Especificación taxonómica
Taxa3 Especificación taxonómica
Familia Familia
GrupoTrofico Grupo trófico al cual pertenece la especie (herbívoro, zooplanktívoro, carnívoro, depredador tope).
A_ord dato origen para calcular peso a partir de talla
B_pen dato de pendiente para convertir talla en peso
NivelTrofico Lugar que ocupa la especie en la cadena trófica expresada en número y de acuerdo al alimento y tomado de fishbase
Recursos adicionales: Rodriguez, A.S, Báez, M, Aburto-Oropeza, O., Arango, G., Masacareñas-Osorio, I., Erisman, B. (2014). Protocolo de Monitoreo: Para Ambientes Marinos Costeros. UC San Diego: Aburto Lab. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/23f1404c
Alfredo Giron-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Richness, density and biomass as measures of health. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M37P4Z
Arturo Ramirez-Valdez, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Alfredo Giron-Nava (2014): Mexico’s reefs and underwater data. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M33W21
Alfredo Giron-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Health Index. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3059H
Alfredo Girón-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Riqueza específica, densidad y biomasa como indicadores de salud. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M38G6Z
Arturo Ramírez-Valdez, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Alfredo Girón-Nava (2014): Arrecifes de México y los datos bajo el agua. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3201C
Alfredo Girón-Nava, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Andrew F. Johnson (2014): Índice de Salud. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M35P4B
José Cota-Nieto, Tomás Plomozo, Isaí Dominguez-Guerrero, Matthew Costa, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Snapper Habitat in Gulf of California Mangrove Forests. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3CC77
José Cota-Nieto, Tomás Plomozo, Isaí Domínguez-Guerrero, Matthew Costa, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Hábitat de pargos en los bosques de manglar del Golfo de California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M39G68
Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Alfredo Girón Nava, Amy Hudson Weaver, Benigno Guerrero, Carlos Sánchez y Octavio Aburto Oropeza (2015): Recovering fishery resources in the Gulf of California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3D304
Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Alfredo Girón Nava, Amy Hudson Weaver, Benigno Guerrero, Carlos Sánchez y Octavio Aburto Oropeza (2015): Recuperando los recursos pesqueros del Golfo de California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3S88
dataMares Metadata
Date of last update: 04/01/2023
Project title: Long Term Ecological Monitoring  of Gulf of California and Pacific coast
Abstract: The ecological data of fish and invertebrates were collected under the leadership of the Centro para la Biodiversidad Marina y la Conservación, A.C. (CBMC) as part of Gulf of California Marine Program's long-term ecological monitoring program. This effort includes researchers and students from the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur in La Paz, BCS.  This monitoring program has been implemented since 1998, making it the longest-running monitoring effort in the Gulf of California. The data included in this data base was collected in the Bahía de los Ángeles (2008, 2009, 2010, 2016), the Región de las Grandes Islas (2008, 2009, 2010 and 2016) in Baja California; Santa Rosalia (2009, 2010, 2016, 2021, 2022), San Basilio (2019, 2021-2022), Loreto (1998-2019, 2021-2022), El Corredor (2013-2019), La Paz (1998-2019,2022), La Ventana (2013-2018), Cabo Pulmo (1999, 2009-2022), and Cabo San Lucas (1998-2000, 2009-2019, 2021-2022) in Baja California Sur; Islas Marías (2010, 2018), Bahia Banderas (2013), Nayarit; Revillagigedo (2006, 2016, 2017,2021), Colima; Ixtapa Zihuatanejo (2017), Guerrero; Huatulco (2016), Oaxaca. There are 216 species of fish and 244 species of invertebrates included in this inventory.
Key words: monitoring , fish, invertebrate, transects, rocky reefs
Lead investigator: Ismael Mascareñas
Contact information: ismael.mascarenas@gocmarineprogram.org
Data Manager: Santiago Dominguez-Sanchez
Usage Rights & Copyrights: Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Octavio Aburto Oropeza, Carlos Sanchez Ortiz
How to cite: Mascareñas-Osorio, Ismael; Aburto-Oropeza, Octavio; Sanchez Ortiz, Carlos (2018). Ecological monitoring in reefs of the Gulf of California and Pacific Ocean. In dataMares: Ecological Monitoring. UC San Diego Library Digital Collections. https://doi.org/10.6075/J0KH0KJ3
Geographic Area: Gulf of California, Mexican Pacific
Collection dates: 1998-2022
Embargo:
Primary data sofware or service: Excel
Dataset name: em_gc_ecological_monitoring
Methods: Data are collected using transect belt methods, using the standardized methodology of the Long-Term Ecological Monitoring Program designed by the Gulf of California Marine Program.  Divers use SCUBA diving in rocky reefs and use linear transects (fish = 50m x 5m; invertebrates = 30m x 1m) as a guide. Fish: Transects were placed at 20 and 5 meters depth. If the sites monitored does not have a rocky bottom at more than 5 meters, only one depth is surveyed. Fishes are visually counted over a belt transect with a reference area of 50m x 5m: first swim over transect, larger demersal fishes are prioritized, whereas on the second swim the focus is on cryptic species. Therefore, the final estimation area is of 250 m squared. Fish sizes are also visually estimated, this measures is then combined to bibliographic data to estimate biomass.Invertebrates: Transects were placed at  20 and 5 meters depth. Invertebrates are visually counted over a belt transect with a reference area of 30m x 1m: one swim over transect counting epibenthic macroinvertebrates (larger than 2 cm) and recording estimated size.
Coordinate system: WGS 1984
Additional Notes:
Tab name: base
Fields Description
Label Fish or invertebrates
Year Year of sampling
Month Month of sampling
Day Day of sampling
IDReef Reef Id associated to table Reefs
IDSpecies Species Id associated to table Species
Depth Depth of transect
Transect Number of transect
Area Area covered by transect
Size Size of the species recorded
Quantity Number of individuals of the species recorded by diver
Real.year Real year of sampling. Refers to a delayed monitoring due to environmental conditions (hurricane Odile); only applies to data from February and March, 2015 data.
Tab name: Reefs
Fields Description
IDReef Reef Id
Region Region where reef is located
Island Island of the reef or Mexican state if it is on the continent
Reef Name of the reef
Habitat Type of habitat
Latitude Latitude with 6 decimals
Longitude Longitude with 6 decimals
CONCAT Label that integrates reef and habitat
Tab name: Species
Fields Description
IDSpecies Species Id
Label Fish or invertebrates
Species Name of the species
Phylum Phylum
Taxa1 Diverse taxonomic specifications
Taxa2 Diverse taxonomic specifications
Taxa3 Diverse taxonomic specifications
Family Family
TrophicGroup Trophic groups the species belongs to (hervibores, zooplanktivores, carnivores, top predator).
A_ord origin data to convert length in weight
B_pen slope data to convert length in weight
TrophicLevel Position in trophic chain in number for each species according to food items from fishbase
Related resources: Rodriguez, A.S, Báez, M, Aburto-Oropeza, O., Arango, G., Masacareñas-Osorio, I., Erisman, B. (2014). Protocolo de Monitoreo: Para Ambientes Marinos Costeros. UC San Diego: Aburto Lab. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/23f1404c
Alfredo Giron-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Richness, density and biomass as measures of health. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M37P4Z
Arturo Ramirez-Valdez, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Alfredo Giron-Nava (2014): Mexico’s reefs and underwater data. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M33W21
Alfredo Giron-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Health Index. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3059H
Alfredo Girón-Nava, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Riqueza específica, densidad y biomasa como indicadores de salud. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M38G6Z
Arturo Ramírez-Valdez, Andrew F. Johnson, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Alfredo Girón-Nava (2014): Arrecifes de México y los datos bajo el agua. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3201C
Alfredo Girón-Nava, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza, Andrew F. Johnson (2014): Índice de Salud. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M35P4B
José Cota-Nieto, Tomás Plomozo, Isaí Dominguez-Guerrero, Matthew Costa, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Snapper Habitat in Gulf of California Mangrove Forests. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3CC77
José Cota-Nieto, Tomás Plomozo, Isaí Domínguez-Guerrero, Matthew Costa, Octavio Aburto-Oropeza (2014): Hábitat de pargos en los bosques de manglar del Golfo de California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M39G68
Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Alfredo Girón Nava, Amy Hudson Weaver, Benigno Guerrero, Carlos Sánchez y Octavio Aburto Oropeza (2015): Recovering fishery resources in the Gulf of California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3D304
Ismael Mascareñas Osorio, Alfredo Girón Nava, Amy Hudson Weaver, Benigno Guerrero, Carlos Sánchez y Octavio Aburto Oropeza (2015): Recuperando los recursos pesqueros del Golfo de California. DataMares. InteractiveResource. http://dx.doi.org/10.13022/M3S88
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