Benthic habitat map of the marine ecosystems in the Mexican Caribbean: Cabo Catoche - Xcalak

The map represents the spatial distribution of benthic habitats in shallow waters of the Mexican Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, from Cabo Catoche to Xcalak, in an area of 1001 km², with an average maximum depth of 18 m. The resulting map defined 50 classes generated from the union of benthic cover and submarine relief maps, estimated from the processing of 23 WorldView-2 satellite images (2009-2015), and with information from in-situ bathymetric soundings. The information is presented in shapefile format. This product is the result of the ArrecifeSAM project, coordinated by CONABIO as part of the Marine-Coastal Information and Analysis System (SIMAR) (https://simar.conabio.gob.mx).<br><br><b>Acknowledgement:</b>The authors acknowledge the logistical and technical support provided by National Financial Trust Fund for Biodiversity and the National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO).