Abstract

During the “Madibenthos” scientific mission organized by the National Museum of Natural History of Paris in Martinique, a mapping of the state of health of the coral communities of the island was carried out. That was done by a rapid estimation method of health status of coral communities which takes into account both the coral-algal phase shift and high sedimentation rate on the reefs. These two phenomena represent the main causes of degradation of the coral communi-ties in the Lesser Antilles. Health status of benthic coral communities was divided in four classes (class 1: pristine reefs; class 2: still healthy reefs; class 3: damaged reefs; class 4: relictual coral assemblages. The work was carried out using direct observation by the authors, as well as by the examination of 8.980 photographs and 223 videos taken around the island by all the participants of the field trip. Data were consistent enough to establish the state of health for 268 sites around the island. Among them, 19 % were attributed to class 1, 17 % to class 2, 41 % to class 3 and 23 % to class 4. Depth did not present any significant influence. On the contrary, the reef communities situated on the windward coasts of the island were much more degraded than those located on the leeward coasts. This study has highlighted the urgency to improve the quality of the coastal waters around Martinique Island.

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