Biology, New York University-Abu Dhabi, PO Box 129188, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2013 Jul 30;72(2):289-301. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2013.05.016. Epub 2013 Jun 12.
Coral reef science has grown exponentially in recent decades in the Gulf. Analysis of literature from 1950 to 2012 identified 270 publications on coral reefs in the Gulf, half of which were published in just the past decade. This paper summarizes the growth and evolution of coral reef science in the Gulf by examining when, where and how research has been conducted on Gulf reefs, who conducted that research, and what themes and taxa have dominated scientific interest. The results demonstrate that there has been significant growth in our understanding of the valuable coral reefs of the Gulf, but also highlight the fact that we are documenting an increasingly degraded ecosystem. Reef scientists must make a concerted effort to improve dialogue with regional reef management and decision-makers if we are to stem the tide of decline in coral reefs in the Gulf.
近年来，墨西哥湾的珊瑚礁科学呈指数级增长。对 1950 年至 2012 年文献的分析表明，在海湾地区有 270 篇关于珊瑚礁的出版物，其中一半是在过去十年中发表的。本文通过考察海湾珊瑚礁研究的时间、地点和方式、研究人员以及主导科学兴趣的主题和分类群，总结了海湾珊瑚礁科学的发展和演变。研究结果表明，我们对海湾有价值的珊瑚礁的认识有了显著提高，但也突出了这样一个事实，即我们正在记录一个生态系统日益退化的情况。如果我们要阻止海湾珊瑚礁的衰退，珊瑚礁科学家必须共同努力，加强与区域珊瑚礁管理和决策者的对话。
