| Ecosystem |
Gulf of Thailand |
| Type |
Sea/Bay/Gulf |
| Salinity |
saltwater |
| Other Names |
|
| Location |
|
LME SAU No 35. Lies between Thailand, Cambodia and Malay Peninsula. LME2002, LME2006, SAU 2008. |
13° N 4° N - 100° E 105° E |
|
| Location Map |
Gulf_of_Thailand.png |
| Size Ref |
|
River Length |
|
Area |
387517 km2 |
Drainage Area |
|
|
| Depth |
|
Average Depth |
|
Max Depth |
|
Ref |
|
|
| Temperature |
|
| Description |
The Gulf of Thailand Large Marine Ecosystem is a semi-enclosed sea located in Southeast Asia. It is situated immediately to the northwest of the South China Sea LME, from which it is separated by two sills. Monsoon seasons, and the intrusion of sea water from the South China Sea are the two natural phenomena that seem to drive the Gulf of Thailand LME and are the major causes of oceanographic change in the absence of any massive regime shift. The Gulf of Thailand is part of the Sunda Shelf and is relatively shallow, with depths varying between 45 and 80 meters. It consists of three subsystems: a shallow inner gulf, two areas of shallow grounds between the east and west coasts, and a central basin, with a shallow sill that limits water exchanges with the open South China Sea (see Piyakarnchana, 1989; Eiamsa-Ard and Amornchairojkul, 1997). 23 rivers, including 5 major ones, drain large amounts of fresh water into the Gulf (http://na.nefsc.noaa.gov/lme/text/lme35.htm). Temperature given for 100m is for 50m depth. |
| Comments on faunal list |
Area from SAU (November 2015). |
| URL 1 |
http://www.seaaroundus.org/lme/35.aspx |
| URL 2 |
|
| Ecosystem Checklist Link |
|
| Total |
|
Species |
Families |
Species |
Families |
Reference |
|
632 |
115 |
|
|
|
|
