Mesoamerican Reef Food Web
Coral Reef
Western Caribbean — Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras
Description
The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef is the second-largest reef system in the world, stretching from Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula to Honduras. It supports whale sharks, manatees, and critically endangered elkhorn corals. Connectivity between reef, seagrass, and mangrove habitats creates a linked food web across multiple ecosystem types.
Trophic Pyramid
Level 5
Decomposers
Sponges
Detritivorous crabs
Marine bacteria
3 species
Level 4
Tertiary Consumers
Caribbean reef shark
Whale shark
Great barracuda
3 species
Level 3
Secondary Consumers
Nassau grouper
Green moray
Loggerhead turtle
3 species
Level 2
Primary Consumers
Queen conch
West Indian manatee
Stoplight parrotfish
3 species
Level 1
Producers
Elkhorn coral
Turtle grass
Calcareous algae
3 species
Apex Predators
Tertiary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Primary Consumers
Producers
Key Interactions
- Nassau grouper aggregate in thousands at spawning sites, attracting reef sharks
- Whale sharks filter-feed on fish eggs released during mass spawning events
- Mangrove nurseries export juvenile fish to adjacent coral reef habitats
- Queen conch graze algae on seagrass beds, linking reef and seagrass food webs