The Maputo Bay Ecosystem – is a comprehensive book that presents the current knowledge about Maputo Bay in Mozambique, the largest coastal embayment in the country and a major feature along the eastern African coastline. Located on the fringe of the tropical Western Indian Ocean, Maputo Bay is a rich natural complex estuarine system forming a vast and heterogeneous environment with a diverse social and economic context. The book comprises four main parts plus sections within that include special contributions as case studies, for a total of nineteen chapters and thirty case studies. Part I deals with the environmental and human setting (geography, geomorphology and evolution, hydrology and circulation, human settings, and history of research); part II presents the main habitats and ecological functioning (mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, coral reefs, charismatic fauna, and adjacent terrestrial environments); part III is on fisheries (semi-industrial shallow-water shrimp, magumba fish and artisanal fisheries); part IV addresses cross-cutting issues (pollution, climate change, and management options). The book further analyses research gaps providing recommendations that intend to contribute for scientific progress and management. It is the result of the contribution of 68 regional and international experts, and is thoroughly illustrated with 57 maps, 67 graphical figures and 45 colour photographic plates.