Factors Linking Declining Reef Health Ecosystem to Poverty in Lagonoy Gulf, Eastern Bicol, Philippines

This paper provided likely linkage between poverty and reef health status in Lagonoy Gulf. It showed that fishers are poor as reflected by their weekly income ranging from PhP 2,500.00 to <500.00 averaging PhP 1,214.00 which is way below the PhP 3,596 week-1 poverty threshold for Bicol Region. Population density in coastal municipalities is highest in Albay with 512 ind. km-2 and least in Catanduanes with 325 ind. km-2. Fishers are relatively ageing with mean age of 48 years and average fishing experience of 29 years. Majority only reached or finished primary level, and only 6% reached college. Five out of six do not own boat and gears, showing financial incapacity. Hook and lines were used by 66% of the fishers while, nets comprised 32%. Living coral cover declined from 1993 to 2018 by almost 25%. High dependence to coastal resources, high demand for seafood, destructive gears, lack of supplemental sources of income, low educational background, lack of skills, low income are identified contributory factors to habitat degradation. With the declining reef health and fish catch, fishers that are living below poverty threshold are more likely to become poorer because the reef’s capacity to provide goods and services is lost.

The coral reef health at surrounding blue swimming crab fishery sites in Mandangin Island, East Java, Indonesia

Blue swimming crab fishery activities very often do not put into account the environmental condition. Coral reef, as one of the blue swimming crab habitats, can be affected by these activities. This study aims to determine the effect of blue swimming crab fisheries on coral health in Mandangin Island, East Java, Indonesia. Data collection points are determined based on the results of interviews by participatory mapping. Water quality data includes visibility, temperature, salinity, pH, DO, current velocity. Collecting coral reef data were using Line Intercept Transect (LIT), while for reef fish Underwater Visual Census (UVC) were used. The coral health index was determined based on the relevance between benthic components and fish components. The average of Mandangin Island’s water quality is in accordance with the quality standards of the Indonesian Minister of Environment Decree No.51 of 2004. Hard coral cover and fish biomass are classified as low, but the value of resilience is high. The coral reef health index value on Mandangin Island is 3.

Ascidians Outbreak: A Threat For Coral Reefs in Panjang Island, Jepara

Eutrophication and sedimentation have become a major threat to coral reefs in nearby areas with anthropogenic activities. These threats are often accompanied by shifting ecosystems from coral-rich to fast-growing algae-dominated water, and high prevalence of coral disease. In Panjang Island, Jepara, we observed the outbreak of photosynthetic ascidians along with a high sedimentation at the eastern part of the island. The ascidians were seen overgrowing most substrates including corals, macroalgae, dead-coral-algae, and rubbles in April to May 2019. In July and August 2019, observation and data collection using quadrant transect were conducted to monitor the outbreak. The result showed that ascidians were still present in the area, despite becoming pale and smaller. This report shows that the outbreak of these photosynthetic ascidians was not persistent, however, the effect on coral reef health should not be overlooked.

Composition of Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Microbial Communities in Waters around the Florida Reef Tract

The Florida Keys, a delicate archipelago of sub-tropical islands extending from the south-eastern tip of Florida, host the vast majority of the only coral barrier reef in the continental United States. Abiotic as well as microbial components of the surrounding waters are pivotal for the health of reef habitats, and thus could play an important role in understanding the development and transmission of coral diseases in Florida. In this study, we analyzed microbial community structure and abiotic factors in waters around the Florida Reef Tract. Both bacterial and eukaryotic community structure were significantly linked with variations in temperature, dissolved oxygen, and total organic carbon values. High abundances of copiotrophic bacteria as well as several potentially harmful microbes, including coral pathogens, fish parasites and taxa that have been previously associated with Red Tide and shellfish poisoning were present in our datasets and may have a pivotal impact on reef health in this ecosystem.

The Invisible Threat: How Microplastics Endanger Corals

Coral reefs are one of the most endangered habitats due to climate change, but not enough attention has been paid to how plastic pollution affects coral reef health. Plastics are massively produced worldwide for many purposes and they degrade very slowly, breaking down into tiny, invisible particles of 5 mm or less, called microplastics. When these tiny particles reach coral reefs, they harm corals by constantly rubbing on them through the action of waves and currents. Corals may also ingest microplastics and get a false sense of “fullness,” which results in the coral not feeding on nutritious food. Within the coral, microplastics may block the gut and cause internal damage. Also, microplastics, which are already made of chemicals, can pick up pollutants and harmful microorganisms from the seawater and transfer them to the coral. A reduction of microplastics pollution is therefore urgent.

Reef foraminifera as bioindicators of coral reef health in southern South China Sea

Pulau Tioman is a famous tourist island off Peninsular Malaysia with beautiful coral reefs. This study aims to assess the health of the coral reefs surrounding Pulau Tioman based on the application of the Foraminifera in Reef Assessment and Monitoring Index (FI). Ten sampling sites around Pulau Tioman were studied with a total of 30 samples. Eight orders, 41 families, 80 genera, and 161 species of benthic foraminifera were identified. The agglutinated type of foraminifera constituted 2–8% of the total assemblages. Calcareous hyaline and porcelaneous groups represented 79% and 19% of the total assemblages, respectively. Symbiont-bearing taxa were the most common foraminifera. The results indicate that most of the sampling sites are conducive for coral reef growth with good recoverability from future stress to the ecosystem. However, several areas with higher coastal development and tourism have reduced water and sediment quality. Therefore, the limit on the number of visitors and tourists should be revised to enable coral growth and health. The FI values in this study showed a positive correlation with good water qualities and a negative correlation with organic matter enrichment. The FI is a good measure to assess the health of a coral reef and can be applied to other reef ecosystems around Malaysia.