An extensive reef system at the Amazon River mouth

Moura, Rodrigo L.; Amado‐Filho, Gilberto M.; Moraes, Fernando C.; Brasileiro, Poliana S.; Salomon, Paulo S.; Mahiques, Michel Michaelovitch de; Bastos, Alex Cardoso; Almeida, Marcelo Gomes de; Silva, Jomar M.; Araujo, Beatriz Ferreira; Brito, Frederico P.; Rangel, Thiago Pessanha; Oliveira, Bráulio Cherene Vaz de; Bahia, Ricardo G.; Paranhos, Rodolfo; Dias, Raphael Mendes Ritti; Siegle, Eduardo; Figueiredo, Alberto G.; Pereira, Renato Crespo; Leal, Camille V.; Hajdu, Eduardo; Nils, E.; Gregoracci, Gustavo Bueno; Neumann‐Leitão, Sigrid; Yager, Patricia L.; Francini‐Filho, Ronaldo B.; Fróes, Adriana M.; Campeão, Mariana E.; Silva, Bruno Santana da; Moreira, Ana Paula B.; Oliveira, Luciana de; Soares, Ana Carolina; Araujo, Laís S.; Oliveira, Nara L.; Teixeira, João Batista; Valle, Rogério; Thompson, Cristiane C.; Rezende, Carlos Eduardo de; Thompson, Fabiano L.

doi:10.1126/sciadv.1501252

Cited by 297 publications

(280 citation statements)

References 70 publications

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“…These sediments provide substrate and nutrients for the largest preserved mangrove region of South America that spans Marajo Island, the coastline of Pará and Amapá states, Brazil, and the Guianas. Another recent discovery confirmed the existence of an extensive carbonate reef system of ~9,500 km 2 from the French Guiana border to Maranhão State in Brazil (~1,000 km), with unique functional attributes due to the plume influence, which provides ecosystem services and acts as a selective biogeographic corridor between the Caribbean and the South Atlantic Ocean 34 . Our understanding of the environmental links and mechanisms of interactions between the Amazon plume and the coral reef is still rudimentary.…”

Section: The Main-stem Amazon System and The Amazon Sediment Plumementioning

confidence: 83%

Damming the rivers of the Amazon basin

Latrubesse

Arima

Dunne

et al. 2017

Nature

638

473

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SummaryMore than 100 hydropower dams have already been built in the Amazon basin and numerous proposals for further dam constructions are under consideration. The accumulated negative environmental effects of built and proposed dams, if constructed, will trigger massive hydrophysical and biotic disturbances that will impact the Amazon basin's floodplains, estuary, and sediment plume. By introducing a Dam Environmental Vulnerability Index (DEVI) we quantify the current and potential impacts of dams in the basin. The scale of foreseeable environmental degradation indicates the need for collective action among nations and states to avoid cumulative, far-field impacts. We suggest institutional innovations to assess and avoid the likely impoverishment of Amazon rivers.

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Section: The Main-stem Amazon System and The Amazon Sediment Plumementioning

confidence: 83%

Damming the rivers of the Amazon basin

Latrubesse

Arima

Dunne

et al. 2017

Nature

638

473

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“…coral reefs, estuaries, mangrove forests) (Giarrizzo et al 2010, Moura et al 2016). These areas provide habitat for sawfishes (Lessa et al 1999) and several nationally endangered elasmobranch species, such as Isogomphodon oxyrhynchus (Lessa et al 2016), Sphyr na mokarran, S. tudes, and S. lewini (Almeida et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sawfish (Pristidae) records along the Eastern Amazon coast

Feitosa¹,

Martins²,

Nunes³

2017

Endang. Species. Res.

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Sawfishes are the most endangered cartilaginous fishes on the planet. Their external morphology facilitates entanglement in fishing nets and their K-selected life history hinders the recovery of exploited populations. The Eastern Amazon coast (EAC) is known to be an area where sawfishes occur in Brazil, but few studies have been conducted in the area to better understand their biology and ecology. The present study reports sawfish captures along the coast of Brazil's second largest state. Data were collected from interviews with fishermen, a literature review, and media reports. In total, 23 captures were recorded between 1984 and 2016. Records include adults, a pregnant female with near-term embryos, juveniles, and young-of-the-year specimens. Most catches were reported in the Canal do Navio, an area under strong human pressure. Sawfish saws are valuable items and, for many anglers in precarious economic and social situations, high market prices eclipse the fishing prohibitions laid down under federal laws. Urgent research is required to understand sawfishes' life history, identify their critical habitats, and effectively manage and conserve these species along the EAC.

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“…In addition, Cordeiro et al (2015), based on the analysis of museum material, have speculated on the occurrence of rhodolith beds in the GARS by stating that "Although our data were insufficient to confirm the existence of rhodolith banks offshore of the Amazon River, some of the sampled corals analyzed were adhered to coralline algae." Finally, Moura et al (2016) performed extensive trawling and side scan sonar surveys, confirming the GARS' existence and estimating its size at 9,500 km 2 . Results from the present survey suggest that the GARS is composed by typical mesophotic reefs (70-220 m depth) build mainly by living calcareous algae ("coralline algal frameworks, " cf.…”

mentioning

confidence: 77%

“…The examination of over 20 h footage obtained by means of submarine and 15 h footage obtained by the drop camera, together with previous data (Moura et al, 2016), allowed us to advance the knowledge put forward here. Each of the submarine dives (n = 8) lasted about 4 h and covered a total linear distance of about 1 km.…”

mentioning

confidence: 79%

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Perspectives on the Great Amazon Reef: Extension, Biodiversity, and Threats

et al. 2018

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Here we provide a broad overview of the Great Amazon Reef System (GARS) based on the first-ever video surveys of the region. This footage supports four major hypotheses: (1) the GARS area may be six times larger than previously suggested (up to 56,000 km 2 ); (2) the GARS may extend deeper than previously suggested (up to 220 m); (3) the GARS is composed of a greater complexity and diversity of habitats than previously recognized (e.g., reef platforms, reef walls, rhodolith beds, and sponge bottoms); and (4) the GARS represents a useful system to test whether a deep corridor connects the Caribbean Sea to the Southwest Atlantic Ocean. We also call attention to the urgent need to adopt precautionary conservation measures to protect the region in the face of increasing threats from extractive oil and gas practices. With less than 5% of the potential area of the GARS surveyed so far, more research will be required to inform a systematic conservation planning approach and determine how best to establish a network of marine protected areas. Such planning will be required to reconcile extractive activities with effective biodiversity conservation in the GARS.

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An extensive reef system at the Amazon River mouth

Abstract: A novel Amazonian reef biome was discovered, encompassing large rhodolith and sponge beds under low light, low oxygen, and high POC.

Cited by 297 publications

References 70 publications

Damming the rivers of the Amazon basin

Damming the rivers of the Amazon basin

Sawfish (Pristidae) records along the Eastern Amazon coast

Perspectives on the Great Amazon Reef: Extension, Biodiversity, and Threats

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