Ernesto Arias

• PhD
• Professor (Full) at Center for Research and Advanced Studies of the National Polytechnic Institute

Coral reefs are threatened by multiple stressors that have driven a decline in the cover of reef-building coral species, resulting in a loss of reef structure and function. Restoration reef science provides useful conservation tools to preserve and restore the key species and ecological functions of these ecosystems. However, gaps remain in restora...

A wide range of fish species are caught in reef fisheries. However, fishing efforts tend to be highly selective in favor of large species, which generally have low population growth rates, making them more vulnerable to overfishing. When the decline of large predators occurs, fishing efforts start to focus on catching species from lower trophic lev...

Coral bleaching, a consequence of stressed symbiotic relationships between corals and algae, has escalated due to intensified heat stress events driven by climate change. Despite global efforts, current early warning systems lack local precision. Our study, spanning 2015–2017 in the Mesoamerican Reef, revealed prevalent intermediate bleaching, peak...

Aim Ecological state shifts that alter the structure and function of entire ecosystems are a concerning consequence of human impact. Yet, when, where and why discrete ecological states emerge remains difficult to predict and monitor, especially in high‐diversity systems. We sought to quantify state shifts and their drivers through space and time in...

Coral reef ecosystems in the Caribbean are on the brink of ecological collapse, largely due to the significant decline in once-abundant populations of Acropora species. For this reason, Acropora palmata is now classified as critically endangered by the IUCN. In response, restoration programs are in place, but assessment of the genomic diversity of...

Coral reefs are threatened by multiple stressors that have driven a decline in the cover of reef-building coral species, resulting in a loss of reef structure and function. Restoration reef science provides useful conservation tools to preserve and restore the key species and ecological functions of these ecosystems. However, gaps remain in restori...

Coral reefs are the most diverse marine ecosystems. However, coral cover has decreased worldwide due to natural disturbances, climate change, and local anthropogenic drivers. In recent decades, various genetic methods and molecular markers have been developed to assess genetic diversity, structure, and connectivity in different coral species to det...

Las pesquerías basadas en las agregaciones reproductivas pueden amenazar a especies como los pargos que tienen conductas gregarias durante el período reproductivo. Esta nota ofrece elementos que sugieren la existencia de sitios de agregación no registrados previamente y no protegidos en el Parque Nacional Cayos de San Felipe (PNCSF), región surocci...

Human impact increasingly alters global ecosystems, often reducing biodiversity and disrupting the provision of essential ecosystem services to humanity. Therefore, preserving ecosystem functioning is a critical challenge of the twenty-first century. Coral reefs are declining worldwide due to the pervasive effects of climate change and intensive fi...

Losing coral diversity is one of the most important consequences of coral reefs' ongoing degradation. Alternate: As the planet enters its sixth global extinction event, the loss of biodiversity due to coral reef degradation becomes of paramount importance. However, the loss of coral species diversity and its relationship to multiple global and loca...

Chapter 12. Status and trends of coral reefs of the Caribbean region, pp. 1-25. In: Souter, D., Planes, S., Wicquart, J., Logan, M., Obura, D., & Staub, F. (Eds.) Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2020. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, International Coral Reef Iniciative, Australian Institute of Marine Science, & Australian Governement.

The changing world presents negative impacts on marine ecosystems and has led to the development of diversified tools to support reef restoration. Harnessing restoration to achieve success needs innovative techniques that also address the restoration of reef fish assemblages, contributing to the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem functions...

Since 2011, massive inflows of pelagic Sargassum have been recorded in the Caribbean region, which has affected coastal ecosystems, mainly water quality and the flora and fauna that inhabit these areas. The aim of this study is to evaluate the temporal dynamics of Sargassum arrival and its relationship on water quality in three sites of the Mexican...

Coral restoration has been recognized as an increasingly important tool for coral conservation in recent years. In the Caribbean, the endangered staghorn coral, Acropora cervicornis has been studied for restoration for over two decades with most studies focusing on evaluating simple metrics of success such as colony growth and survivorship in both...

Here we report the bleached coral cover and its drivers observed at Alacranes Reef in 2015. Our results show that 2015 was an unprecedented heat stress event. However, we observed low coral bleaching, with the most substantial impact on sites with a 10-20% of coral cover with bleaching. Depth was the most relevant variable related to coral bleachin...

Coral reefs are highly diverse marine ecosystems offering invaluable services to hundreds of million people worldwide. These ecosystems are currently threatened by global and local stressors, particularly affecting structurally complex coral species in depauperate zones such as the Caribbean. Marine protected areas (MPAs) can counteract climatic an...

Over the past few decades, coral reef ecosystems have been lost at accelerated rates as a result of global climate change and local stressors. Local management schemes can help improve the condition of coral reefs by enhancing their ecosystem recovery capacity. Caribbean conservation efforts include mitigation of local anthropogenic stressors, and...

Trophic networks are the way by which energy is distributed through the ecosystem and out of it. Each ecosystem at a particular functional developmental state (FDS) has attributes that can be measured and understood through the food web. Trophic interactions can further our understanding of the FDS of coral reefs that can be associated with their g...

Coral reefs worldwide are degrading due to climate change, overfishing, pollution, coastal development, coral bleaching, and diseases. In areas where the natural recovery of an ecosystem is negligible or protection through management interventions insufficient, active restoration becomes critical. The Reef Futures symposium in 2018 brought together...

Aim The ‘abundant centre’ hypothesis states that species are more abundant at the centre of their range. However, several recent large‐scale studies have failed to find evidence for such a pattern. Here we used extensive global data of reef fishes to test the ‘abundant centre’ pattern, and to examine variation in the abundance patterns across speci...

Acropora cervicornis is a structurally and functionally important Caribbean coral species. Since the 1980s, it has suffered drastic population losses with no signs of recovery and has been classified as a critically endangered species. Its rapid growth rate makes it an excellent candidate for coral restoration programs. In 2011, the Fundación Domin...

Lionfish (Pterois volitans) have rapidly invaded the tropical Atlantic and spread across the wider Caribbean in a relatively short period of time. Because of its high invasion capacity, we used it as a model to identify the connectivity among nine marine protected areas (MPAs) situated in four countries in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea....

Coral reefs worldwide are degrading due to climate change, overfishing, pollution, coastal development, bleaching and diseases. In areas where natural recovery is negligible or protection through management interventions insufficient, active restoration becomes critical. The Reef Futures symposium in 2018 brought together over 400 reef restoration...

Coral reef biodiversity is rapidly decreasing as a result of the loss of coral cover, which modifies the structure and functioning of the ecosystem. Understanding how coral reef communities respond in space and over the long term is essential in order to implement management strategies and reduce the effects of biodiversity loss on coral reefs. Fis...

This data package presents a three-decade (1985-2017) assessment of heat stress exposure in the wider Caribbean coral reefs at the ecoregional and local scales. The main heat stress indicator used was the Degree Heating Weeks (DHW) calculated from daily Sea Surface Temperature "CoralTemp" data from CRW-NOAA available from 1985 to the present and f...

The exploration of gradients of development stages of coral reef ecosystems is a subject poorly studied, especially when they exhibit multiple degrees of geomorphological or structural development or both. The objective of the present work was to study the gradient of functional and structural maturity of the Mexican Caribbean coral reefs (CM). Her...

Changes in structure and function of coral reefs are increasingly significant and few sites in the Caribbean can tolerate local and global stress factors. Therefore, we assessed coral reef condition indicators in reefs within and outside of MPAs in the southeastern Dominican Republic, considering benthic cover as well as the composition, diversity,...

Increasing heat stress due to global climate change is causing coral reef decline, and the Caribbean has been one of the most vulnerable regions. Here, we assessed three decades (1985–2017) of heat stress exposure in the wider Caribbean at ecoregional and local scales using remote sensing. We found a high spatial and temporal variability of heat st...

The structures, functions, and services provided by coral reef ecosystems are deteriorating worldwide. However, not all coral reefs are affected the same way, with some showing signs of resistance and/or recovery from disturbances. Understanding the drivers and feedbacks that contribute to shifts in community structure is valuable to support resili...

The assessment of biodiversity in coral reefs requires the application of geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing and analytical tools in order to make cost-effective spatially explicit predictions of biodiversity over large geographic areas. Here we present a spatially explicit prediction for coral reef fish diversity index, as well a...

Aim To investigate biotic and abiotic correlates of reef‐fish species richness across multiple spatial scales. Location Tropical reefs around the globe, including 485 sites in 109 sub‐provinces spread across 14 biogeographic provinces. Time period Present. Major taxa studied 2,523 species of reef fish. Methods We compiled a database encompassin...

The Caribbean Sea is considered a unique biogeographic region and is among the top 5 world hotspots of marine biodiversity. Yet, over the last years it is among the regions where the most serious declines in terms of reef area, health, and productivity is occurring. In this study, the coral reef fish community of the Mexican Caribbean was analyzed...

Este trabajo ofrece la primera lista taxonómica de macroalgas, corales y peces presentes en los arrecifes de coral del Parque Nacional Cayos de San Felipe, en la plataforma suroccidental de Cuba. El inventario reúne información de siete años de muestreos in situ (entre 2006 y el 2015) y de publicaciones y reportes de pesca. Las observaciones se rea...

This study evaluates the habitat characteristics, fishing effort, and production, as well as changes in the individuals, such as changes in size frequency, of the spawning aggregations of mutton snapper Lutjanus analis and grey triggerfish Balistes capriscus, caught in the Chinchorro Bank Biosphere Reserve (CBBR), Mexico. The mutton snapper aggrega...

This work presents an updated taxonomic list of the fish fauna of the coral reefs in the Southeastern Reefs Marine Sanctuary (SMASE) in the Dominican Republic. The inventory is the result of 360 visual surveys of coral reefs during the period 2013-2016. We recorded 150 species from 86 genera and 47 families, including 14 new records for the southea...

Spawning aggregations are critical for the resilience of some coral reef fish populations and for the sustainability of many coastal fisheries. However, overexploitation of these aggregations is leading to a rapid decline of fish stocks. The fish aggregation site (FAS) associated with the San Felipe Keys National Park (in southwestern Cuba) is of g...

This manuscript provides new insights on an unusual morphological plasticity growth form on Acropora spp. in the Caribbean. This abnormal knob-shaped growth is thought to be a progression from the damselfish “chimneys” that are commonly seen in coral-algal farms. However, the diameters of the observed knobs tend to be much larger on Acropora palmat...

Acropora cervicornis and Acropora palmata have declined dramatically in the Caribbean since the early 80’s, and are classified as Critically Endangered Species. To promote their recovery, restoration programs focusing on introducing fragmented specimens have been intensified. The current study was conducted in the south-eastern part of the Dominica...

Several fireworms Hermodice carunculata (Pallas, 1766) were observed feeding on coral colonies or transplanted fragments of the threatened staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis (Lamarck, 1816), in outplanting sites at Bayahibe, Dominican Republic. The fireworm H. carunculata has a highly negative impact on A. cervicornis populations, causing several...

Numerous papers have reported that Pterois volitans and Pterois miles have invaded the Western Atlantic. Identification of Petrois sp. has been based in morphological differences. However, given their similarities, these are not enough to differentiate both species with certainty. Identifying these species by biological analysis faces difficulties...

Tropical landscape and seascape systems are intimately linked by complex ecological relationships that provide environmental services to human societies located in coastal areas and beyond. Paradoxically, nonsustainable activities from these human societies are threatening the functions and benefits of these systems. Anthropogenic processes that da...

A nivel global, el tercer evento masivo de blanqueamiento de coral (2015-2017) está causando cambios sin precedentes en los ecosistemas arrecifales. El blanqueamiento masivo se relaciona con múltiples factores biológicos (intrínsecos) y ambientales (extrínsecos), que actúan sinérgicamente y provocan respuestas distintas que influyen en la condición...

1. Despite increasing policies of protection, few localities in the Caribbean remain spared from human impacts. These lightly affected areas can better reflect the past composition of reef fish assemblages and provide baseline information about the natural factors driving fish distributions in the region. 2. Reef fish assemblage structures were ana...

Coral-algal phase shifts in which coral cover declines to low levels and is replaced by algae have often been documented on coral reefs worldwide. This has motivated coral reef management responses that include restriction and regulation of fishing, e.g. herbivorous fish species. However, there is evidence that eutrophication and sedimentation can...

Results of PERMANOVA analysis and Pairwise tests of temporal trends in Length (cm), Abundance (number of individuals), and Biomass (kg/100 m2) for different categories of herbivorous fish at Mahahual reefs, over the period corresponding to the observed coral-algal phase shift (2000–2010). The categories are Total herbivorous fish (scarids and scant...

Model parameters and the locations pertaining to data used for parameterization, with corresponding references. To increase readability, the row colors for the parameters alternate between white and gray. (DOC)

Average and Standard Deviation (SD) of Length (cm), Abundance (number of individuals) and Biomass (kg/100 m2) of Total herbivorous fish (acanthurids and scarids combined), acanthurids and scarids at Mahahual reefs, for years during the observed coral-algal phase shift (DOCX)

Distribution and abundance of the lionfish Pterois volitans (Scorpaeniformes: Scorpaenidae) and associated native species in Parque Marino Cayos de San Felipe, Cuba. The first lionfish sighting at the National Park " Cayos de San Felipe " was in 2009 and could be a threat to its marine ecosystem diversity and their capacity to generate services. To...

Abstract. The genus Siderastrea exhibits high levels of morphological variability. Some of its species share similar morphological characteristics with congeners, making their identi- fication difficult. Siderastrea stellata has been reported as an intermediary of S. siderea and S. radians in the Brazilian reef ecosystem. In an earlier study conduc...

Devil firefish Pterois miles (Bennett, 1828) is a species native to the Indo-Pacific that along with Pterois volitans (Linneaus, 1758) has been invading the western Atlantic since the 1980's. Morphological characters, life cycle, habits, and dispersal potential of this species are very similar to those of Pterois volitans, to such extent that its t...

Devil firefish Pterois miles (Bennett, 1828) is a species native to the Indo-Pacific that along with Pterois volitans (Linneaus, 1758) has been invading the western Atlantic since the 1980’s. Morphological characters, life cycle, habits, and dispersal potential of this species are very similar to those of Pterois volitans, to such extent that its t...

Coral reefs are under intense conditions of stress caused by the anthropogenic activities in coastal areas and the increase of human population. Water effluents from urban and industrial areas carry large amounts of sediments and pollutants affecting corals populations, inducing bioerosion, increasing diseases and promoting the development of algae...

Coral reef and reef-fish communities are complex systems that have spatial structures that are influenced by multiple factors and processes that interact at several scales. We analysed composition data of reef-fish communities in the Yucatan Peninsula fringing reef system using a hierarchical multi-scale survey design to elucidate the origins of th...

In recent decades there has been a reported decline in the abundance of corals worldwide. As part of a strategy to reduce the degradation of reefs and contribute to the recovery of diminished coral populations, nurseries and areas of transplanted coral fragments have been established in different parts of the world. In the Caribbean Acropora cervic...

En este capítulo se analizan los cambios en la biodiversidad y sus consecuencias en el funcionamiento de los ecosistemas y sus servicios, incluida la relación entre su funcionamiento y los servicios ecosistémicos. Para ilustrar los patrones se presentan estudios de caso.

Este libro pretende brindar una mirada a los temas para los cuales el conocimiento sobre los ecosistemas de México es más amplio, así como aquellos críticos que no han sido abordados. El análisis abarca los factores que inciden en la biodiversidad, la estructura y el funcionamiento de estos ecosistemas, con especial énfasis en la relación que exist...

Tropical landscape and seascape systems are intimately linked by complex ecological relationships that provide environmental services to human societies located in coastal areas and beyond. Paradoxically, nonsustainable activities from these human societies are threatening the functions and benefits of these systems. Anthropogenic processes that da...

Tropical landscape and seascape systems are intimately linked by complex ecological relationships that provide environmental services to human societies located in coastal areas and beyond. Paradoxically, nonsustainable activities from these human societies are threatening the functions and benefits of these systems. Anthropogenic processes that da...

Caribbean coral reefs are under strong natural and human pressures and many have undergone phase shifts as a result of local and global change. However few studies have quantified the extent of these phase shifts and the potential impacts that they have on coral reef communities. A temporal comparative analysis of several coral reefscape and landsc...

Fish recruitment patterns provide valuable information for understanding their population dynamics. This paper analyzes temporal and spatial variations in recruits abundance of 4 reef fishes (Stegastes partitus, Chromis cyanea, Gramma loreto and Scarus taeniopterus) at Chinchorro Bank, Mexican Caribbean, by means of visual censuses conducted in spu...

As the impact of anthropogenic activity and climate change continue to accelerate rates of degradation on Caribbean coral reefs, conservation and restoration faces greater challenges. At this stage, it is of particular importance in coral reefs to recognize and to understand the structural spatial patterns of benthic assemblages. We developed a fie...

Significance Our results indicate that, even in highly diverse systems like coral reefs, we can no longer assume that the erosion of species diversity can be discounted by the high probability of functional redundancy: i.e., that several species can support the same function. Indeed, we show that fish species tend to disproportionately pack into a...

The impact of anthropogenic activity on ecosystems has highlighted the need to move beyond the biogeographical delineation of species richness patterns to understanding the vulnerability of species assemblages, including the functional components that are linked to the processes they support. We developed a decision theory framework to quantitative...

Surgeonfish and parrotfish play an important role in structuring the benthic communities of coral reefs. However, despite their importance, little is known about their distribution patterns in the north sector of the Mesoamerican Reef System. This study evaluated the distribution of these fish in 34 sites in four habitats (lagoon, front, slopes and...

Delineating regions is an important first step in understanding the evolution and biogeography of faunas. However, quantitative approaches are often limited at a global scale, particularly in the marine realm. Reef fishes are the most diversified group of marine fishes, and compared to most other phyla, their taxonomy and geographical distributions...

In the marine realm, the tropics host an extraordinary diversity of taxa but the drivers underlying the global distribution of marine organisms are still under scrutiny and we still lack an accurate global predictive model. Using a spatial database for 6336 tropical reef fishes, we attempted to predict species richness according to geometric, bioge...

There is an increasing need to examine regional patterns of diversity in coral-reef systems since their biodiversity is declining globally. In this sense, additive partitioning might be useful since it quantifies the contribution of alpha and beta to total diversity across different scales. We applied this approach using an unbalanced design across...

Efficient reef management strategies rely on detailed knowledge of biological exchange dynamics. At present, available connectivity information on Mexican Atlantic reefs is scarce, particularly concerning the Veracruz Reef System (VRS), which is located in the south-western Gulf of Mexico. This study used a hierarchically nested sampling design to...

Shift transitions in dominance on coral reefs from hard coral cover to fleshy macroalgae are having negative effects on Caribbean coral reef communities. Data on spatiotemporal changes in biodiversity during these modifications are important for decision support for coral reef biodiversity protection. The main objective of this study is to detect t...

Shift transitions in dominance on coral reefs from hard coral cover to fleshy macroalgae are having negative effects on Caribbean coral reef communities. Data on spatiotemporal changes in biodiversity during these modifications are important for decision support for coral reef biodiversity protection. The main objective of this study is to detect t...

The top 10 species that contribute more strongly to the dissimilarity (SIMPER). Average dissimilarity = AD. (PDF)

Individual-based rarefaction curves for the reef terrace (A), reef slope (B), and the whole reef (C) in the years 2000, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2010. (PDF)

Species rarity based on abundance and incidence by geomorphological units and whole reef. Numbers of singletons and doubletons (A). Numbers of unique and duplicate species (B). (TIF)

Shared and unshared fish species from reef terrace, reef slope, and reef between years. Singletons = S, doubletons = D, unique species = U, duplicate species = DU, and invasive specie = ***. (PDF)

In the marine realm, the tropics host an extraordinary diversity of taxa but the drivers underlying the global distribution of marine organisms are still under scrutiny and we still lack an accurate global predictive model. Using a spatial data-base for 6336 tropical reef fishes, we attempted to predict species richness according to geometric, biog...