## 4 Discussion
### TC Impacts on Terrestrial Vegetation and Chl-a Concentration in Coastal Waters  
Although we do not provide direct measurements of vegetation biomass or productivity rates, the use of EVI relative change (Figure 9) and Chl-_a_ (Figures 10 and 11) are good proxies to establish quantitative ecological impacts by TCs at the landscape/seascape level. These estimates show the utility of EVI as a good indicator of vegetation changes and damage when assessing ecological impacts directly related to TC strength [13]. Previous (EVI) vegetation studies across the YP have also been able to differentiate other functional ecosystem attributes, such as forest phenology [60], forest degradation due to both deforestation [110] and TC impacts [31; 111], vegetation health regulated by land use/change and precipitation patterns [112], and gross primary productivity fluctuations related to landscape-level seasonal evapotranspiration flux [113]. In all four storms included in our analysis, the reduction in EVI was negatively associated to the wide bands of hurricane-wind force associated with Dean's impact (i.e., 278 km/h) followed by Wilma and Emily (213 km/h). EVI changes along the inland path illustrated the trend and degree of the negative impact. Even when Wilma crossed a relatively small track of land (90 km; Figure 9C), in comparison to the other storms, EVI change values were negative throughout most of its track. A similar pattern was also observed in the case of Dean, where net EVI changes were also consistent along its 335-km track. In contrast, as result of the narrow and weaker speeds, EVI changes were lower along Emily's 215-km continental path, with most impacts observed within the first 100 km, while Stan's path showed negative EVI values in only a small segment representing <30% of its 300-km inland path. Given the different levels of TC impact indicated by the negative EVI, all vegetation, including agricultural areas located in the northern region, were cumulatively impacted by the 2005 storms(Emily, July; Stan and Wilma, October). The impact was not only related to plant mortality but also to water availability in the long term. Indeed, water resources in the YP are limited as indicated by interannual variation in drought frequency and duration [55; 57; 104; 114; 115]. Since interannual precipitation is driven by TC frequency [104], water availability in the YP is variable where either a surplus or deficit can represent a legacy that influence vegetation resilience. This hydrological status is functionally critical since most of the YP is dominated by deciduous forest [116] that depends on TC-induced precipitation for reproduction and growth [110]. Previous studies indicate that years identified as the driest in a long-term series (2000-2014) show a relationship with the deficit of TCs affecting the YP. This dependence is apparently controlled by the presence of \"El Nino\" episodes, while the wettest years might be related to a greater number of TCs due to the presence of \"La Nina\" periods [113]. However, the ENSO attribution as a climate variability driver controlling TC frequency in the YP needs to be weighted and further evaluated, especially in the context of climate change as the TC internal structure (i.e., \"rain-maker\") is significantly influenced by increasing global warming [25]. Another link between TC physical attributes (e.g., strength, trajectory) and ecosystem function is the spatiotemporal variation of Chl-\(a\) along the YP coastal zone. Our comparative analysis shows a significant increase in Chl-\(a\) after TC passage along with localized impacts depending on the storm exit point along the coast; this increase has been observed in other regions of the CS, west of the YP (e.g., Banco Chinchorro, Figure 1B; [117]). By considering a concentration of 0.5 mg/m\({}^{3}\) as an average baseline, we identified enhanced areas (>15,000 km\({}^{2}\), Figure 10B) with concentrations >0.5 mg/m\({}^{3}\) after the passage of Stan and Emily.