Assessing mesophotic coral ecosystems inside and outside a Caribbean marine protected area

Widespread shallow coral reef loss has led to calls for more holistic approaches to coral reef management, requiring inclusion of ecosystems interacting with shallow coral reefs in management plans. Yet, almost all current reef management is biased towards shallow reefs, and overlooks that coral reefs extend beyond shallow waters to mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs; 30–150 m). We present the first detailed quantitative characterization of MCEs off Cozumel, Mexico, on the northern Mesoamerican Reef in the Mexican Caribbean, and provide insights into their general state. We documented MCE biodiversity, and assessed whether MCEs adjacent to a major town and port, where coastal development has caused shallow reef damage, have similar benthic and fish communities to MCEs within a National Park. Our results show that overall MCE communities are similar regardless of protection, though some taxa-specific differences exist in benthic communities between sites within the MPA and areas outside. Regardless of protection and location, and in contrast to shallow reefs, all observed Cozumel MCEs were continuous reefs with the main structural habitat complexity provided by calcareous macroalgae, sponges, gorgonians and black corals. Hard corals were present on MCEs, although at low abundance. We found that 42.5% of fish species recorded on Cozumel could be found on both shallow reefs and MCEs, including 39.6% of commercially valuable fish species. These results suggest that MCEs could play an important role in supporting fish populations. However, regardless of protection and depth, we found few large-body fishes (greater than 500 mm), which were nearly absent at all studied sites. Cozumel MCEs contain diverse benthic and fish assemblages, including commercially valuable fisheries species and ecosystem engineers, such as black corals. Because of their inherent biodiversity and identified threats, MCEs should be incorporated into shallow-reef-focused Cozumel National Park management plan.

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Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems Inside and Outside a Caribbean Marine Protected Area

10.1101/241562 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Erika Gress ◽

Maria J Arroyo-Gerez ◽

Georgina Wright ◽

Dominic A Andradi-Brown

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Fish Species ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Large Body ◽

Management Plan ◽

Ecological Communities ◽

Reef Management ◽

Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems ◽

Shallow Reef

AbstractRecent widespread shallow coral reef loss has led to calls for more holistic approaches to coral reef management, requiring inclusion of all ecosystems interacting with coral reefs in management plans. Yet almost all current reef management is biased towards shallow reefs, and overlooks that many reef species can also be found on mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs; reefs 30 −150 m). This study presents the first detailed quantitative characterisation of MCEs off Cozumel, in the Mexican Caribbean and provides insights into their general state. We investigate whether MCEs within the marine park have similar ecological communities to mesophotic reefs outside protection, despite widely recognised shallow reef impacts outside the protected area. Results show some taxon specific differences in MCE benthic communities between sites within the protected area and areas outside; although overall communities are similar. Regardless of protection and location, and in contrast to shallow reefs, all observed Cozumel MCEs were continuous reefs dominated by calcareous macroalgae, sponges, octocorals, and black corals. Hard corals were present on MCEs, but at low abundance. We found that 42.5 % of fish species recorded on Cozumel could be found on both shallow reefs and MCEs, including many commercially-important fish species. This suggest that MCEs may play a role in supporting fish populations. However, regardless of protection status and depth we found that large-body fishes (>500 mm) were nearly absent at all studied sites. MCEs should be incorporated into the existing shallow-reef focused management plan in Cozumel, with well informed and implemented fisheries and harvesting regulations.

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Linking Land and Sea through Collaborative Research to Inform Contemporary applications of Traditional Resource Management in Hawai‘i

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10093147 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 3147 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Jade Delevaux ◽

Kawika Winter ◽

Stacy Jupiter ◽

Mehana Blaich-Vaughan ◽

Kostantinos Stamoulis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Resource Management ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Natural Resources ◽

Pacific Islands ◽

Local Communities ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Coastal Development ◽

Modeling Framework ◽

Reef Management ◽

Management Approaches

Across the Pacific Islands, declining natural resources have contributed to a cultural renaissance of customary ridge-to-reef management approaches. These indigenous and community conserved areas (ICCA) are initiated by local communities to protect natural resources through customary laws. To support these efforts, managers require scientific tools that track land-sea linkages and evaluate how local management scenarios affect coral reefs. We established an interdisciplinary process and modeling framework to inform ridge-to-reef management in Hawai‘i, given increasing coastal development, fishing and climate change related impacts. We applied our framework at opposite ends of the Hawaiian Archipelago, in Hā‘ena and Ka‘ūpūlehu, where local communities have implemented customary resource management approaches through government-recognized processes to perpetuate traditional food systems and cultural practices. We identified coral reefs vulnerable to groundwater-based nutrients and linked them to areas on land, where appropriate management of human-derived nutrients could prevent increases in benthic algae and promote coral recovery from bleaching. Our results demonstrate the value of interdisciplinary collaborations among researchers, managers and community members. We discuss the lessons learned from our culturally-grounded, inclusive research process and highlight critical aspects of collaboration necessary to develop tools that can inform placed-based solutions to local environmental threats and foster coral reef resilience.

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Potential contribution of fish restocking to the recovery of deteriorated coral reefs: an alternative restoration method?

10.7287/peerj.preprints.1664 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Uri Obolski ◽

Lilach Hadany ◽

Avigdor Abelson

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Low Cost ◽

Management Approach ◽

Rapid Decline ◽

Potential Contribution ◽

Reef Management ◽

Reef Restoration ◽

Reef Recovery ◽

Restoration Method

Counteracting the worldwide trend of coral reef degeneration is a major challenge for the scientific community. A crucial management approach to minimizing stress effects on healthy reefs and helping the recovery of disturbed reefs is reef protection. However, the current rapid decline of the world's reefs suggests that protection might be insufficient as a viable stand-alone management approach for some reefs. We thus suggest that the ecological restoration of coral reefs (CRR) should be considered as a valid component of coral reef management, in addition to protection, if the applied method is economically applicable and scalable. This theoretical study examines the potential applicability and outcomes of restocking grazers as a restoration tool for coral reef recovery – a tool that has not been applied so far in reef restoration projects. We studied the effect of restocking grazing fish as a restoration method using a mathematical model of degrading reefs, and analyzed the financial outcomes of the restocking intervention. The results suggest that applying this restoration method, in addition to protection, can facilitate reef recovery. Moreover, our analysis suggests that the restocking approach almost always becomes profitable within several years. Considering the relatively low cost of this restoration approach and the feasibility of mass production of herbivorous fish, we suggest that this approach should be considered and examined as an additional viable restoration tool for coral reefs.

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Reef Foraminifera As Bioindicator Of Coral Reef Health in Pulau Tioman, Pahang, Malaysia

10.21203/rs.3.rs-51033/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Aishah Norashikin Abdul A’ziz ◽

Fatin Izzati Minhat ◽

Pan Hui-Juan ◽

Hasrizal Shaari ◽

Wan Nurzalia Wan Saelan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Dominant Species ◽

Peninsular Malaysia ◽

Coastal Development ◽

Assessment And Monitoring ◽

Reef Recovery ◽

Reef Health ◽

Coral Reef Area ◽

Reduced Water

Abstract Pulau Tioman is one of the famous tourism islands in Peninsular Malaysia due to the beautiful terrestrial and coral reefs ecosystem. This study aims to assess and monitor the health of coral reef sites surrounding Pulau Tioman based on the application of Foraminifera in Reef Assessment and Monitoring (FORAM) Index. A total of ten selected sampling sites from west and east side of Pulau Tioman were setup in front of the major beach areas around Pulau Tioman. At each site, 100 m transect was laid out from shore towards the reef slope and surface sediment samples were collected at 50 m intervals. Eight orders, 41 families, 80 genera and 161 species of benthic foraminifera were identified around Pulau Tioman. Amphistegina lessonii found to be the most dominant species and the least dominant species (< 4%) are Bolivina vadescens, Elphidium neosimplex, Heterolepa dutemplei, Heterolepa subhaidingerii, Mikrobelodontos bradyi, Milliolinella suborbicularis, Operculina discoidalis, Parahourinoides fragillissimus, Quinqueloculina incisa, Quinqueloculina sulcate, Triloculinella bertheliniana and Triloculinella parisa. The highest and lowest numbers of species was recorded at station J3 and station F3. The agglutinated type of foraminifera contributed between 2–8% of the total assemblages. Meanwhile, calcareous hyaline and porcelaneous group represent 79% and 19% of total assemblages respectively. Based on the functional groups, symbiont-bearing taxa were the most common foraminiferal found in most of the stations. The present study indicates that majority of sampling sites around Pulau Tioman are conducive for coral reef growth and could recover from any future bleaching events or temporary damage in the ecosystem. However, several areas with higher coastal development and tourism activities has reduced water quality (FI < 4) and chances of better reef recovery. Thus, the number of visitors and tourists should be revised in order to produce a better condition for coral reefs to grow. This assumption is based on the established results of the FORAM index. Thus, we suppose that FORAM index could be used together with coral reef health index in other reef ecosystems around Malaysia to determine the condition and status of coral reef area.

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Potential contribution of fish restocking to the recovery of deteriorated coral reefs: an alternative restoration method?

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.1732 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 4 ◽

pp. e1732 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Uri Obolski ◽

Lilach Hadany ◽

Avigdor Abelson

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Low Cost ◽

Management Approach ◽

Rapid Decline ◽

Potential Contribution ◽

Reef Management ◽

Reef Restoration ◽

Reef Recovery ◽

Restoration Method

Counteracting the worldwide trend of coral reef degeneration is a major challenge for the scientific community. A crucial management approach to minimizing stress effects on healthy reefs and helping the recovery of disturbed reefs is reef protection. However, the current rapid decline of the world’s reefs suggests that protection might be insufficient as a viable stand-alone management approach for some reefs. We thus suggest that the ecological restoration of coral reefs (CRR) should be considered as a valid component of coral reef management, in addition to protection, if the applied method is economically applicable and scalable. This theoretical study examines the potential applicability and outcomes of restocking grazers as a restoration tool for coral reef recovery—a tool that has not been applied so far in reef restoration projects. We studied the effect of restocking grazing fish as a restoration method using a mathematical model of degrading reefs, and analyzed the financial outcomes of the restocking intervention. The results suggest that applying this restoration method, in addition to protection, can facilitate reef recovery. Moreover, our analysis suggests that the restocking approach almost always becomes profitable within several years. Considering the relatively low cost of this restoration approach and the feasibility of mass production of herbivorous fish, we suggest that this approach should be considered and examined as an additional viable restoration tool for coral reefs.

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Characteristics of Macroalgal Consumption by Eight Herbivorous Coral Reef Fishes From the Xisha Islands, China, as Determined by Microscopy, 18S rRNA High-throughput Sequencing and Stable Isotope Analyses

10.21203/rs.3.rs-892727/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Peng Wu ◽

Teng Wang ◽

Yong Liu ◽

Chunhou Li ◽

Yayuan Xiao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Stable Isotope ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

High Throughput ◽

Fish Species ◽

18S Rrna ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Xisha Islands ◽

Herbivorous Fishes ◽

Isotope Analyses

Abstract Herbivorous fishes play an important role in controlling the overabundance of macroalgae on coral reefs. Understanding the feeding selectivity and consumption of macroalgae by herbivorous fishes can be challenging in studies of their ecological role in the preservation and recovery of coral reefs. Coral reef decline, macroalgal overgrowth and overfishing are clearly visible in the Xisha Islands, China. However, there have been no studies of the feeding behaviors of herbivorous fishes in this area. We used microscopy, 18S rRNA high-throughput sequencing and stable isotope analyses to comprehensively examine the dietary spectrum of eight herbivorous reef fish species common in the Xisha Islands, including one parrotfish, two chub, two unicorn fish and three rabbitfish. Multi-technique analyses of intestinal contents revealed that Kyphosus vaigiensis, Naso unicornis and Siganus argenteus showed a high consumption potential of macroalgae, suggesting that they are the key browsers which should receive priority protection in in the Xisha Islands. Kyphosus cinerascens, K. vaigiensis, N. unicornis and S. punctatissimus fed on the entire macroalgal thallus, indicating their greater ecological importance compared with species which only consume the algal fronds. However, Calotomus carolinus can consume the red alga Pneophyllum conicum, which is widely distributed on Indo-Pacific coral reefs and can overgrow and kill live corals. Clearly, a diverse herbivorous fish fauna is very important in the Xisha coral reefs. These results not only demonstrated the various functions of different herbivorous fish species in macroalgal removal, but also provided insights into the management of herbivorous fishes on the coral reefs of the South China Sea.

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Threat of blast fishing on coral diversity in Peucang Island, Ujung Kulon National Park, Indonesia

Ocean Life ◽

10.13057/oceanlife/o010105 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 26-31

Author(s):

RADEN WILLY WIGUNA GUMBIRA ◽

FITRI RIZKIA ◽

TRI DEWI KUSUMANINGRUM PRIBADI ◽

MUHAMMAD SYAEFUL HIDAYAT

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

National Park ◽

Diversity Indices ◽

Live Coral ◽

Coral Coverage ◽

High Concern ◽

Coral Reef Ecosystems ◽

Blast Fishing ◽

Study Sites

Gumbira RWW, Rizkia F, Pribadi TDK, Hidayat MS. 2017. Threat of blast fishing on coral diversity in Peucang Island National Park, Indonesia. Ocean Life 1: 26-31. As a maritime country with high biodiversity, the health of Indonesian coral reefs is of high concern. Coral reef ecosystems are friable, and mortality occurs relatively quickly after disturbance, not only by nature but also by human activities such as fish bombing. Fish bombing is a big issue that has always threatened coral reefs, including in Peucang Island, part of Ujung Kulon National Park, a place that is protected by law to preserve its natural diversity. A study on coral coverage was conducted to observe the condition of corals and related biota in a coral reef ecosystem. Data was collected using Point Intercept Transect method in 2m and 8m depths. The results showed that coral coverage in 8-meter depth is only 44.02 percent of the live coral in 2-meter depth. The reduction in the value of Diversity Indices, Dominance Indices as well as the Evenness Index in all study sites led to low diversity, with no dominance by a particular species at any of the study sites. The results also showed that corals are well distributed in both depths. Over the past three years, the damage to corals in Peucang Island had generally increased by 0.7 percent due to fish bombing activities.

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Exploring the Lack of Funding for Coral Reef Research and it’s Effects on Coral Reef Management and Conservation

Journal of Student Research ◽

10.47611/jsrhs.v10i4.2101 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

Author(s):

Jenna Bushnell ◽

Soo Park

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Marine Biology ◽

Government Officials ◽

Reef Management ◽

Research Programs ◽

College Professor ◽

Initial Assumption ◽

Coral Reef Ecosystems

Climate change is greatly harming coral reefs (Gibbs and West, 2019). It is important to research how to help these coral reefs build resilience against climate change but research programs are severely underfunded (Johnston et al. 2020). This paper explored how lack of funding prevents scientists from saving coral reefs and how scientists themselves can be affected. The goal of this paper was to bring to light the struggles faced in the midst of underfunding to feasibly gain support from politicians and government officials to promote funding for these programs. Through three virtual interviews with two scientists and one college professor, I gathered personal experiences from these participants on how coral reefs are being affected today, why research is necessary, and how lack of funding prevents the restoration of these reefs. With the use of a thematic analysis, I was able to recognize common themes between the interviews in order to conclude how lack of program funding prevents scientists from managing and restoring these coral reef ecosystems. The initial assumption for this paper was that coral reef research is underfunded because coral reefs are considered less important, however, the analysis of the data for this paper concluded that all research programs are underfunded. In essence, marine biology, in general, is underfunded as opposed to mainly research on coral reefs. As a result, scientists can be very limited in their abilities to conduct research.

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ESTIMASI DANA MASYAKARAT MELALUI VALUASI EKONOMI KERUSAKAN TERUMBU KARANG DI DESA POKA KOTA AMBON

Jurnal Ilmu Lingkungan ◽

10.14710/jil.17.1.42-50 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 42

Author(s):

Eygner Talakua

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Willingness To Pay ◽

Economic Valuation ◽

Economic Value ◽

Rehabilitation Program ◽

Anthropogenic Pressure ◽

Community Perception ◽

Reef Management ◽

The People

Ambon Bay, Ambon City is a region with high anthropogenic pressure and is very influential on coastal and marine resources, especially coral reefs. Damage to coral reefs in Ambon Bay occurred in Poka Village, handling has been done through the rehabilitation program with coral transplantation techniques, but the need for support and community participation in its management. One of the factors not yet successful management of coral reefs is lack of funds, whereas according to the rules of fund of coral reef management activities one of them can be sourced from the community. This study aims to determine the perception of the community on the existence of coral reefs, analyze the economic value of coral reef damage, and estimate community funds to repair damage to coral reefs in Poka Village, Ambon City. The study was conducted from January to May 2018 using case study method. A sample of 107 heads of households was obtained through proposive sampling and techniques of economical sampling of economies. The data analysis consisted of the analysis of community perception using the likeness scale on three indicators: knowledge, benefit, and coral reef damage; analysis of non-market economic valuation through CVM method; and estimates of community funds through the calculation of the total value of willingness to pay based on the number of people who are willing.The results showed that: 1). The perception of most of the people is very know and know the existence of coral reefs in Poka Village, only a small perception of hesitate and do not know; 2). There is a relationship of perception and willingness to pay the community to repair damage to coral reefs in Poka Village; 3). The economic value of coral reef damage is Rp. 4.288.000, - / month or Rp 51.456.000, - / year; and 4.) The estimation of community fund for coral reef damage in Poka Village is Rp 3,888,322,95 / month or Rp 46,659,875,46 / year.

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Assessing the Condition of Coral Reefs and the Indicator Fish (Family: Chaetodontidae) in Coastal Waters of Jayapura City, Papua Province, Indonesia

European Journal of Ecology ◽

10.2478/eje-2019-0020 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 126-132

Author(s):

Baigo Hamuna ◽

John Dominggus Kalor ◽

Adinda Intan Rachmadani

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coral Reefs ◽

Fish Species ◽

Coastal Waters ◽

Good Condition ◽

Live Coral ◽

Visual Census ◽

Fish Family ◽

Reef Condition

Abstract The aim of this study was to find out the condition of coral reef coverage and the presence of Chaetodontidae fish in coastal waters of Jayapura City, Indonesia. The observation of coral reef coverage was performed using point intercept transect (PIT) method; meanwhile the observation of the presence of Chaetodontidae fish used visual census method. The result of this study described that coral reef condition in the study site was in severely damage (live coral 0%) in the DOK II site at 6 m depth, moderately damage (live coral 32.00% ± 2.13% to 42.00% ± 13.18%) in Kayu Pulo Island and the DOK II at 3 m depth, and good condition (live coral 56.00% ± 7.48% to 60.00% ± 5.55%) in the Tanjung Kayu Batu. There were 9 Chaetodontidae fish species from Chaetodon genus, Forcipiger genus, and Heniochus genus. The number of Chaetodontidae fish was 95, of which Heniochus acuminatus was the most dominant, as many as 46 individuals.

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