Ecological shallow water delimitation of the Serrana, Roncador, and Quitasueño Atolls of the Seaflower Biosphere Reserve in the Colombian Caribbean

Abstract

I n order to contribute to the sea bottoms knowledge of the Seaflower Biosphere Reserve (RB Seaflower), a mapping update was made at 1:50,000 scale of the Seascape Ecological Units (SEU) for the Serrana, Roncador and Quitasueño atolls, based on the processing and interpretation of ALOS AVNIR – 2 satellite images acquired in 2012. For the attribute assignation was used as reference cartographic products, fieldwork data, and ecological descriptions of the benthic community. A total of 138,967 ha and 30 SEU, which corresponds to 32,908 ha for Serrana, 4,861 to Roncador and 101,198 to Quitasueño. The products generated represents a good approximation of the location, extension and distribution of the benthic seascape elements, constituting the base line information for the management of these atolls, they are also part of the Continental, Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Map of Colombia at scale 1:100,000 (MEC 100K) and the Colombian Coral Areas Atlas (AACC) updated on a digital platform to 2020. However, more extensive field work is needed for cartographic purposes, which allows for greater spatial and thematic detail, and to evaluate cartographic reliability