Arribazones de Sargassum en la costa norte occidental de Cuba

Pelagic Sargassum upheavals in the Caribbean Sea are currently a very large ecological problem due to their negative impact on the tourism industry, fisheries, the environment and society in general. The present work presents a report of Sargassum upwelling that occurred on the western north coast of the Cuban archipelago in March 2019. The species at the tide were Sargassum fluitans and S. natans and the specific area of impact of the upwelling was from the west of Matanzas Bay to Mariel Bay. The upheavals of these macroalgae were classified as moderate compared to other reports from the Mexican Caribbean and the Dominican Republic, this was basically classified by their magnitude and for constituting large, but very fragmented, patches throughout the coast, which did not give continuity, despite of the winds of the first quadrant (from north to east) prevailing during this period. Other events of this type reported in Cuba and the Caribbean region are mentioned and commented.