1 The Gulf of Honduras
W.D. HEYMAN and B. KJERFVE
1.1 Introduction
The Gulf of Honduras is a 10,000km 2 tri-national body of coastal and
marine waters in the extreme western Caribbean Sea, including portions of
the exclusive economic zones of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. For
purposes of this paper, the Gulf extends from Gladden Spit (16.SO N, 88° W)
on the Belize barrier reef to Punta Sal (15.9° N, 87.6° W) on the north coast
of Honduras, including Bahia de Amatique and the entire Caribbean coast
of Guatemala and the southern portion of the Belize barrier reef lagoon
until Placentia (16.5°N, 88.4°W; Fig. 1.1). During the complex geologic
history of the Gulf, volcanic and Paleozoic marine sedimentary rocks experienced successive periods of uplift and inundation resulting in metamorphism and karstification (Lara 1994). Volcanic activity is still evident from
volcanic eruptions in Guatemala City, hot springs in Rio Dulce and southern Belize, and a recent earthquake (6.6 on the Richter scale). The tectonic
plate boundary between North and South American lithospheric plates is
marked by the Cayman Trench, which bisects the Gulf from northeast to
southwest and stretches landward into the Motagua watershed at the Guatemala-Honduras border. As a result, water depths exceeding 2,000 m
extend deeply into the Gulf of Honduras. The 1,000 m isobath parallels the
Belize barrier reef for 50 km starting less than 3 km seaward of the reef
crest at Gladden Spit and extending towards the southwest. At the Sapodilla Cays in the southern extreme of the barrier reef, the 200m isobath continues 40km south towards the Central American land mass. The northwestern edge of the trench in Belize exhibits an extremely steep wall
adjacent to the reef and coastal lagoon, while the southeastern edge of the
trench rises more gently but without interruption such that the Honduran
coast is oceanic to the shore (Fig. 1.1).
Ecological Studies, Vol. 144
U. Seeliger and B. Kjerfve (eds.)
Coastal Marine Ecosystems of Latin America
© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 200 I
W.D. HEYMAN and B. KJERFVE
1.1 Introduction
The Gulf of Honduras is a 10,000km 2 tri-national body of coastal and
marine waters in the extreme western Caribbean Sea, including portions of
the exclusive economic zones of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. For
purposes of this paper, the Gulf extends from Gladden Spit (16.SO N, 88° W)
on the Belize barrier reef to Punta Sal (15.9° N, 87.6° W) on the north coast
of Honduras, including Bahia de Amatique and the entire Caribbean coast
of Guatemala and the southern portion of the Belize barrier reef lagoon
until Placentia (16.5°N, 88.4°W; Fig. 1.1). During the complex geologic
history of the Gulf, volcanic and Paleozoic marine sedimentary rocks experienced successive periods of uplift and inundation resulting in metamorphism and karstification (Lara 1994). Volcanic activity is still evident from
volcanic eruptions in Guatemala City, hot springs in Rio Dulce and southern Belize, and a recent earthquake (6.6 on the Richter scale). The tectonic
plate boundary between North and South American lithospheric plates is
marked by the Cayman Trench, which bisects the Gulf from northeast to
southwest and stretches landward into the Motagua watershed at the Guatemala-Honduras border. As a result, water depths exceeding 2,000 m
extend deeply into the Gulf of Honduras. The 1,000 m isobath parallels the
Belize barrier reef for 50 km starting less than 3 km seaward of the reef
crest at Gladden Spit and extending towards the southwest. At the Sapodilla Cays in the southern extreme of the barrier reef, the 200m isobath continues 40km south towards the Central American land mass. The northwestern edge of the trench in Belize exhibits an extremely steep wall
adjacent to the reef and coastal lagoon, while the southeastern edge of the
trench rises more gently but without interruption such that the Honduran
coast is oceanic to the shore (Fig. 1.1).
Ecological Studies, Vol. 144
U. Seeliger and B. Kjerfve (eds.)
Coastal Marine Ecosystems of Latin America
© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 200 I