United States, Virgin Islands

Wetlands are among the world’s most productive and valuable ecosystems and are an integral part of many ecosystems. This book attempts to raise awareness on the relevance of wetland systems and their current impacts and existency threats in different regions of the world. It aims at describing the status, challenges and loss of wetlands related to conflicts between anthropic activities and natural ecosystem services fundamental for people’s livelihoods.

With only about one-sixth of the original coral cover left, most Caribbean coral reefs may disappear in the next 20 years, primarily due to the loss of grazers in the region, according to this latest report, Status and Trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970-2012. This is the most detailed and comprehensive study of its kind published to date – the result of the work of 90 experts over the course of three years.