Cuban coral reefs have been called the "crown jewels of the Caribbean Sea," but there are few comparative data to validate this claim. Here, we provide an overview of Cuban coral reefs based on surveys carried out between 2010 and 2016 on seven of the main Cuban coral reef systems: Havana, Artemisa, Los Colorados, Punta Francés, Los Canarreos Archipelago, Península Ancón, and Jardines de la Reina. Ecological indicators were evaluated for each of these areas at the community level. Results suggest differences among benthic communities (corals, sponges, and gorgonians) that are most evident for reefs that develop near highly urbanized areas, such as Havana, than for those far from the coast and less accessible. Offshore reefs along the south-central coast at Jardines de la Reina and Península Ancón exhibited high coral density and diversity. Acropora cervicornis (Lamarck, 1816) and the Orbicella complex corals were uncommon, possibly indicating losses prior to our study due to coral diseases or competition with macroalgae. Siderastrea siderea (Ellis and Solander, 1786) was the most consistently-abundant species at all reef sites. The ecological condition at Jardines de la Reina and Península Ancón is comparatively healthy. Our study supports claims that some Cuban coral reef systems are probably among the best preserved in the Caribbean basin, but other highly impacted areas exhibit many of the degradation patterns that are common to the rest of the Caribbean region. Strong conservation strategies are required with regard to subsistence fisheries and pollution at highly-impacted reefs to stop further degradation, and reefs that appear healthy need protection to avoid degradation and maintain resilience.

Mangrove forests provide a range of ecosystem services but may be increasingly threatened by climate change in the North Atlantic due to high-intensity storms. Hurricane Irma (Category 5) hit the northern coast of Cuba in September 2017, causing widespread damage to mangroves; losses have not yet been extensively documented due to financial and logistical constraints for local scientists. Our team estimated Irma’s impacts on Cuban ecosystems in a coastal and upland study area spanning over 1.7 million ha. We developed a multi-resolution time series “vegetation anomaly” approach, where post-disturbance observations in photosynthetically active vegetation (Enhanced Vegetation Index, EVI) were normalized to the reference period (dry season mean over a historical time series). The Hurricane Disturbance Vegetation Anomaly (HDVA) was used to estimate the extent, severity, and temporal patterns of ecological changes with Sentinel-2 and MODIS data and used vicarious validation with microsatellite interpretation (Planet). HDVA values were classed to convey qualitative labels useful for local scientists: (1) Catastrophic, (2) Severe, (3) Moderate, (4) Mild, and (5) No Loss. Sentinel-2 had a limited reference period (2015–2017) compared to MODIS (2000–2017), yet the HDVA patterns were similar. Mangrove and wetlands (>265,000 ha) sustained widespread damages, with a staggering 78% showing damage, largely severe to catastrophic (0–0.81 HDVA; >207,000 ha). The damaged area is 24 times greater than impacts from Irma as documented elsewhere. Caguanes National Park (>8400 ha, excluding marine zones) experienced concentrated, severe mangrove and wetland damages (nearly 4000 ha). The phenological declines from Irma’s impacts took up to 17 months to fully actualize, a much longer period than previously suggested. In contrast, dry forests saw rapid green flushes post-hurricane. With the increase of high-intensity storm events and other threats to ecosystems, the HDVA methods outlined here can be used to assess intense to low-level damages.

The main goal of this research was to obtain baseline field data of the composition of sponges, corals, and gorgonian assemblages that can be used as a reference for future analyses of anthropogenic impact. We tested the hypothesis that relatively homogeneous and well preserved reef units can present notable natural variability in the composition of their communities which are unassociated with changes in land proximity or a human impact gradient. Research was carried out in July 2006 at Los Colorados reef, located in the northwestern region of Pinar del Río Province, Cuba at 12 sampling stations. The biotopes selected were crest, terrace edge and spur and grove. Ecological indicators were diversity of corals, species composition, density of corals, hydrocorals, gorgonians and sponges, and density of selected coral species. A total of 2659 colonies of scleractineans corals representing 36 species were counted. The most abundant species in the crest biotope were Millepora alcicornis, Acropora palmata and Porites astreoides; in the terrace edge and spur and grove, the most abundant species were Siderastrea siderea, Stephanocoenia intersepta, Porites astreoides, Agaricia agaricites and Montastraea cavernosa. We found differences among sites for several indicators (e.g. density of corals, sponges and gorgonians and for selected species), but they could not be associated to any gradient of land influence or human impact. Therefore, sites inside a relatively homogeneous reef unit can present notable natural differences in the composition of their communities.