Pleuronectiforme fishes of the Persian Gulf coastlines along Khuzestan, Bushehr and Hormozgan provinces were morphometrically and meristically studied from April 2003 to September 2005, in order to identify species. In this experiment, 1551 fish samples were caught by trawl or collected from fish markets. The sampling was carried out in 27 regions seasonally. Thirty six traits and parameters in...

This paper discusses the potential contribution of indicators to assess the performance of the governance processes involved in integrated coastal management, focusing on the evaluation phase and the need to complement process-oriented indicators with outcomeoriented indicators to improve adaptive management and accountability. The example of integrated management of marine protected areas is u...

Ecosystems in the tropical coastal zone exchange particulate organic matter (POM) with adjacent systems, but differences in this function among ecosystems remain poorly quantified. Seagrass beds are often a relatively small section of this coastal zone, but have a potentially much larger ecological influence than suggested by their surface area. Using stable isotopes as tracers of oceanic, terr...

This paper addresses the issue of possible land use strategies and responses in coastal zones as a consequence of global environmental change. It will first set out some key elements in global change that are of critical importance for the water and land management in such areas. Next, it will map out in more detail the various environmental and socio-economic repercussions of such megatrends. ...