Newly discovered reefs in the southern Abrolhos Bank, Brazil: Anthropogenic impacts and urgent conservation needs

Abstract

The Abrolhos Bank is an area of high ecological, socio-economic importance and harbour the richest and most-extensive coral reefs in the South Atlantic. Here we report the discovery of shallow (12-25m depth) reef complex with ten large biogenic structures, intermediate between the typical mushroom-shaped pinnacles of the northern Abrolhos Bank (17°-18° S) and the small patch reefs found on the central/southern coast of the Espírito Santo State (19°-20° S). The newly discovered reefs harbour a relatively rich and abundant reef community, with 73 fish and 14 benthic cnidarian species, including endangered and commercially important ones. We discuss on urgent needs of properly mapping and understanding the ecological functioning of this reef system. Information provided here is a baseline for future impact evaluations, particularly considering the recent worst environmental disaster of Brazil from a dam collapse in Doce river that affected the region.

South‐western Atlantic reef fishes: Zoogeographical patterns and ecological drivers reveal a secondary biodiversity centre in the Atlantic Ocean

“…Such richness can be attributed either to the long coastline of Bahia (the longest among Brazilian states) and its habitat diversity or by the transition region in Espírito Santo state, which shelters biogenic reefs to the north and rocky reefs under upwelling influence to the south (Floeter et al., ; Pinheiro, Madureira, Joyeux, & Martins, ; Mazzei et al., ). Finally, the Abrolhos Shelf, the largest reef system in the south Atlantic, spans both the Bahia and Espírito Santo States (Mazzei et al., ; Moura et al., ). Despite lacking well‐developed coralline reefs, the south‐eastern states within the Brazilian Province (Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná and Santa Catarina) have wide continental shelves and numerous coastal islands with rocky reefs.…”

“…Barroso et al (2016) also found the highest richness for prosobranch gastropods in Bahia. Such richness can be attributed either to the long coastline of Bahia (the longest among Brazilian states) and its habitat diversity or by the transition region in Espírito Santo state, which shelters biogenic reefs to the north and rocky reefs under upwelling influence to the south (Floeter et al, 2007;Pinheiro, Madureira, Joyeux, & Martins, 2015;Mazzei et al, 2017). Finally, the Abrolhos Shelf, the largest reef system in the south Atlantic, spans and species in these regions (Cunha et al, 2014;Santos, Schneider, & Sampaio, 2003), and they may contribute to dissimilarities (turnover and nestedness) in species composition between the subprovinces.…”

Risk assessment of small‐scale reef fisheries off the Abrolhos Bank: Snappers and groupers under a multidimensional evaluation

“…The tailings flowed down the Rio Doce and reached the ocean on November 22, 2015, at the southern limit of the Abrolhos Bank. Until this date, mining waste has not been distributed broadly in the study area (LARAMG, unpublished data; Mazzei et al, ; TAMAR & ICMBIO, ). However, the biological communities, habitats and ecosystem destruction are considerable and require a long recovery period (Fernandes et al, ).…”

“…However, the biological communities, habitats and ecosystem destruction are considerable and require a long recovery period (Fernandes et al, ). The main possible damage to the Abrolhos Bank ecosystem includes metal bioaccumulation through food webs, toxic algal blooms, and changes in fish growth, survival and behaviour (Mazzei et al, ).…”

Conservation of Brazilian coral reefs in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean: a change of approach

“…These reefs are found along Brazil's entire northeast coast (Fig. 1), from the state of Maranhão (0°53'S, 44°16'W) down to the north coast of the state of Espírito Santo (19°40'S, 39°17'W); reefs are also found on nearby oceanic islands such Atol das Rocas and Fernando de Noronha (Castro & Pires, 2001;Mazzei et al, 2017).…”