COMPOSITION, STRUCTURE AND DIVERSITY OF COASTAL VEGETATION IN THE NORTHEASTERN OF COZUMEL, MEXICO

Background: Cozumel island, Mexico has one of the best preserved and threatened coastal vegetation in the Mexican Caribbean. Increasing the ecological knowledge about these communities can help to establish conservation priorities. Question: How are the structure and composition of well-preserved coastal vegetation communities in the Island of Cozumel? Study site and dates: The study was conducted in the northeastern coast of the island of Cozumel, at the Municipality of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico, from July 2014 to November 2014. Methods: Five interception lines of 80 m were randomly established along environmental gradient, perpendicular to the coastal line, in each three different environments: rocky beaches, sandy beaches, and coastal dunes. Species richness, diversity, and importance value index of the species in the community were computed, and floristic composition recorded. Results: We recorded 23 families, 35 genera and 37 species. The most representative families are Poaceae with four species, Rubiaceae and Asteraceae with three species each; Sideroxylon and Euphorbia were the richest genera, with two species each. The three coastal environments presented no statistical differences in its relative density, coverage and diversity, but differed in species composition and richness (higher in rocky beaches and coastal dunes). Conclusions: Two dissimilar coastal plant communities can be recognized into the halophilous vegetation type, which are established in sandy and rocky environments respectively. The floristic composition and the species association of the rocky beaches reveal the relationship between the Island of Cozumel coastal vegetation and plant communities in other Caribbean islands.