IW:LEARN

LME:LEARN - LARGE MARINE ECOSYSTEMS

Indonesian Sea (LME)

Type LME

Area 2,329,816 Km²

Perimiter 19,218 Km

Description The Indonesian Sea LME (ISLME) is situated at the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and is bordered by Indonesia and Timor Leste. It covers an area of 2.13 million km², with 98% within Indonesia’s territorial waters, and approximately 2% located within the territorial waters of Timor Leste. Within the ISLME, 1.49% of the area is officially protected, and the area contains 10.82% and 0.76% of the world’s coral reefs and seamounts, respectively. Seasonal monsoons, during which ocean currents reverse directions, exert a significant influence on the LME and beyond. The seas around Indonesia have complex and rapid currents owing to energetic tides over rough topography and owing to the Indonesian Throughflow, which is the flow and exchange of oceanic water between the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The ISLME is globally important in terms of fisheries production, biodiversity, and global climate regulation. Situated at the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, the ISLME is considered a Class I ecosystem with high productivity and represents more than 1% of the global fisheries production. The ISLME is located in the heart of the western Indo-Pacific marine biogeographical region, where species richness is greater than in any other location on Earth, supporting more than 500 species of reef-building corals, 2,500 species of marine fish, 47 species of mangroves and 13 species of seagrasses. Approximately 185 million people live in the ISLME region, with an estimated 184 million in Indonesia, and almost 900,000 in Timor Leste.

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