Mike Gil, recent Ph.D. graduate in Biology, along with American and Mexican collaborators, just published a new study in this month’s issue of the journal Marine Biology. The team’s work centered on measuring the structure of coral reef communities over space and time within Akumal Bay, Mexico, a booming tourism hot spot, largely due to its resident green sea turtle population. The study revealed a 79% decrease in coral cover from 2011-2014, a time period in which monthly snorkelers to the area increased by more than 400%. The study revealed additional signs that tourism in Akumal Bay may be growing at a rate that is not sustainable for the coral reef ecosystem, which supports the bay, its sea turtles, and the local tourism industry itself.
