A Shift in Communities of Conspicuous Macrocrustaceans Associated with Caribbean Coral Reefs following A Series of Environmental Stressors

In 2015, the communities of reef-associated motile macrocrustaceans (decapods and stomatopods) were compared between two coral reefs with contrasting levels degradation in Puerto Morelos (Mexican Caribbean), “Limones”, less degraded, a healthy live cover, “Bonanza”, more macroalgae. Since then, several stressors have impacted Morelos. Massive influxes floating Sargassum, which reached record 2018, 2021, 2022, exacerbated already high eutrophication reef lagoon. An outbreak rapid propagation Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease 2018 changed functionality reefs. Three back-to-back hurricanes struck coast close to October 2020 another one August 2021. We repeated study 2022 examine potential changes habitat crustaceans since 2015. Reef did not increase significantly 2015 but crustacean species richness, diversity, evenness, dominance, differed became similar as community composition. The abundance herbivore crabs increased Limones, displacing coral- hydrocoral-mutualistic detritivore hermit Bonanza. These results suggest taxonomic homogenization reefs, apparently related subtle ecological necessarily captured by standard metrics condition.