Coastal and marine ecosystems, some severely degraded, other still pristine, control rich resources of inshore environments and coastal seas of Latin America's Pacific and Atlantic margins. Conflicts between the needs of the region's nations and diminishing revenues and environmental quality have induced awareness of coastal ecological problems and motivated financial support for restoration and management.
The volume provides a competent review on the structure, processes and function of 22 important Latin American coastal marine ecosystems. Each contribution describes the environmental settings, biotic components and structure of the system, considers trophic processes and energy flow, evaluates the modifying influence of natural and human perturbations, and suggests management needs. Although the focus of the book is on basic ecological research, the results have application for coastal managers.

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The Tectonic and Geological Environment of Coastal South America.- 1 The Gulf of Honduras.- 2 The Coastal Lagoon Ciénaga Grande De Santa Marta, Colombia.- 3 The Maracaibo System, Venezuela.- 4 The Orinoco River Delta, Venezuela.- 5 The Itamaracá Estuarine Ecosystem, Brazil.- 6 The Abrolhos Reefs of Brazil.- 7 The Cabo Frio Upwelling System, Brazil.- 8 Baía de Guanabara, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.- 9 The Lagoon Region and Estuary Ecosystem of Cananéia, Brazil.- 10 The Subtropical Estuarine Complex of Paranaguá Bay, Brazil.- 11 The Convergence Ecosystem in the Southwest Atlantic.- 12 The Patos Lagoon Estuary, Brazil.- 13 The Río de la Plata Estuary, Argentina-Uruguay.- 14 The Bahia Blanca Estuary, Argentina.- 15 The Sand Beach Ecosystem of Chile.- 16 The Peruvian Coastal Upwelling System.- 17 The Gulf of Guayaquil and the Guayas River Estuary, Ecuador.- 18 The Estuary Ecosystem of Buenaventura Bay, Colombia.- 19 Eastern Pacific Coral Reef Ecosystems.- 20 The Tropical Pacific Coast of Mexico.- 21 Upwelling and Lagoonal Ecosystems of the Dry Pacific Coast of Baja California.- 22 The Colorado River Estuary and Upper Gulf of California, Baja, Mexico.- A Summary of Natural and Human-Induced Variables in Coastal Marine Ecosystems of Latin America.