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The Northeast Brazil Shelf Marine ecoregion supports a variety of marine species and provides important breeding grounds for humpback whales. The combination of a continental shelf up to 220 miles (350 km) wide and low levels of fresh water allow for a variety of habitats here, including mangrove forests, fringing and barrier reefs, and the only atoll in the South Atlantic Ocean, Atol das Rocas.
Where the shelf narrows in the central section here, the substrate is made up of carbonate sediments and is affected by the South Equatorial Current. The wide Abrolhos Bank of the east Brazil shelf forms a physical barrier to the Brazil Current, so upwelling and land conditions create even more diversity. This variety of physical conditions creates a diverse shelf here, which in turn is home to a large variety of species. Ten of eighteen coral species are endemic in this ecoregion.
The waters of this ecoregion support populations of lemon, Caribbean reef, and smalleye hammerhead sharks. Humpback whales swim and breed here. Hawksbill, loggerhead, and olive ridley turtles also swim and feed throughout the ecoregion, and green and leatherback turtles come to shore to lay eggs on the beaches.
Overfishing and destructive fishing practices harm reefs and marine life. Development, recreation, and tourism also further damage the integrity of the reef ecosystem.
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