292 



FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



30°H 



Coral reefs 



GULF OF MEXICO 



JAmARY ISOTHERMS AND 

 CORAL DISTRIBUTION 



Fig. 62 — January isotherms and distribution of corals in the Gulf of Mexico 



prisingly few published records exist regarding 

 the presence of reef corals in the Gulf of Mexico. 

 The Alacran reef, described by Agassiz (1878, 

 1888), the Veracruz reef, described by Heilprin 

 (1890), and the Dry Tortugas and Florida Keys 

 reefs, described by Agassiz (1888), Vaughan, and 

 others complete the list. From these, and various 

 unpublished sources, Joubin (1912) prepared a 

 map of coral reefs of this area. Data concerning 

 patches of scattered coral heads are also shown on 

 the U. S. Hydrographic Office Bottom Sediment 

 Charts 1125 BS and 1126 BS published in 1943. 

 All available records to date are indicated m the 

 accompanying chart which shows approximate 

 locations only. 



Except for reefs of the Florida Keys an (^Vera- 

 cruz, published accounts of Gulf reefs are insuffi- 

 cient to give an adequate list of species. The 

 fauna is nevertheless typically West Indian. 

 Forty-two of the 51 species known to the West 



Indies have been recorded from Florida. Only 11 

 of these are reported from Veracruz (Heilprin 

 1890). 



The Caribbean reef fauna consists of about 26 

 genera and 51 species (table 1). The species 

 listed here include a number which are undoubt- 

 edly varieties or growth forms, such as Acropora 

 ■prolifera and certain species of Porites. They are 

 included here, however, since they are recognizably 

 different, and such a list is convenient to field 

 workers who are more concerned with accurate 

 and speedy identification rather than the some- 

 times debatable questions of taxonomy. For 

 purposes of identification, the handbook of At- 

 lantic reef corals by Smith (1948) is most useful 

 since it contains complete keys and descriptions 

 and is well illustrated. For an authoritative 

 monograph on coral taxonomy, reference should 

 be made to Vaughan and Wells (1943) who pro- 

 vide an extensive bibliography. 



