RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY OF THE CORAL-REEFS AND ASSOCIATED ECOSYSTEMS OFCAYOS-COCHINOS, HONDURAS

The coral reefs and associated ecosystems of Cayos Cochinos, Honduras were briefly surveyed in early May 1995. The north coasts of the large r islands are exposed to greater wave energy and the reefs, dropping s teeply to sandy slopes at approximately 30m, were dominated by often m assive colonies of the various forms of Montastraea annularis commonly forming ramparts. The reefs surrounding the tiny carbonate islands in the lee were dominated by Agaricia tenuifolia and were more diverse i n coral species. The shallow shelf extending towards the mainland 25 k m to the west had scattered A. tenuifolia patch reefs, sand lenses, an d sea grasses. There were extensive beds of sea grasses dominated by T halassia testudinum and Syringodium filiforme to the south east and so uth west of Isla Cochino Pequeno. Benthic algae, primarily the brown a lgae Dictyota spp. and Lobophora variegata, were abundant at all sites surveyed, sometimes over-growing living corals. Algal abundance was h ighest nearest to dense human populations. The most likely human distu rbances are over-fishing and nutrification, perhaps acting in synergy with periodic storm damage. The Cayos Cochinos Biological Reserve will be an important experiment on the impact of fishing and other human d isturbances on the balance of corals and algae on coral reefs.