The Brazil Current enters from the east, feeding warm subtropical water to the south along the coast.

Besides supporting extensive coral reef complexes, the Albrohos shelf includes the largest known continuous rhodolith bed in the world, with an estimated area of 20,900 km2.

Rhodoliths are calcareous nodules created by Coralline algae, and support diverse benthic communities in a manner similar to shallow coral reefs.

Biodiversity of the near-shore areas varies with the influence of the coasts - mangroves, sandbanks, and beaches - and also by the nature of the bottoms, which are reefs, gravel and mud.

[11] Over 90% of commercial fishing is on the nearshore coast, typically by artisinal (subsistence and traditional) methods.

[12][11] In the south, along Rio de Janeiro state, the artisinal beach fishery uses large canoes and seine nets to catch migrating schools of bluefish, mullets and bonitos.

[12] Offshore, the industrial fisheries of the region are mostly employ hook-and-line methods rather than trawlers due to the narrow coastal shelf, rocky bottom, and deep canyons.