Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gvvz8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-01-02T21:35:57.515Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Size-structure patterns of juvenile hard corals in the Maldives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 October 2011

Ulisse Cardini ,
Mariachiara Chiantore ,
Roberta Lasagna ,
Carla Morri  and
Carlo Nike Bianchi
Ulisse Cardini*
Affiliation:
DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy
Mariachiara Chiantore
Affiliation:
DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy
Roberta Lasagna
Affiliation:
DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy
Carla Morri
Affiliation:
DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy
Carlo Nike Bianchi
Affiliation:
DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: U. Cardini, DipTeRis (Dipartimento per lo studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse), Università di Genova, Corso Europa 26, I-16132 Genova, Italy email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In April 2006 and May 2007 abundance data of small coral colonies were collected in the central atolls of the Maldives (N3°35.9–4°26.6 E72°47.3–73°57.5) in order to evaluate variability in hard coral recruitment and post-settlement success. Visual quadrats were randomly placed in two reef typologies (oceanic reef and lagoonal reef) at three different depths. Colonies were conventionally defined as ‘recruits’ when smaller than 5 cm in diameter, whereas the term ‘juveniles’ was reserved for colonies ranging between 5 and 15 cm. Clear differences in the relative importance of the two size-classes across the three different depths and the two reef typologies were found. A size-structure index (SsI%), based on abundance data, was calculated in order to evaluate the percentage of ‘recruits’ out of the total juvenile hard corals. SsI% values differed between reef typologies and according to depth zones with a higher percentage of ‘recruits’ found in shallow oceanic reefs. Physical and ecological differences between the two reef typologies according to depth are presumed to cause different success in the settlement of new colonies and their survival during growth. Coupled with the usual estimates of hard coral cover, SsI% may represent a useful tool for monitoring, and be effective for the quick assessment of coral reef recovery after disturbances.

Keywords

coral reefssize-structure indexrecruitmentrecoverymonitoring
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 6 , September 2012 , pp. 1335 - 1339
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Artzy-Randrup, Y., Olinky, R. and Stone, L. (2007) Size-structured demographic models of coral populations. Journal of Theoretical Biology 245, 482–497.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Babcock, R.C. (1984) Reproduction and distribution of two species of Goniastrea (Scleractinia) from the Great Barrier Reef province. Coral Reefs 2, 187–204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bak, R.P.M. and Engel, M.S. (1979) Distribution, abundance and survival of juvenile corals (Scleractinia) and the importance of life history strategies in the parent coral community. Marine Biology 54, 341–352.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bianchi, C.N., Morri, C., Pichon, M., Benzoni, F., Colantoni, P., Baldelli, G. and Sandrini, M. (2006a) Dynamics and pattern of coral recolonization following the 1998 bleaching event in the reefs of the Maldives. In Suzuki, Y., Nakamori, T., Hidaka, M., Kayanne, H., Casareto, B.E., Nadaoka, K., Yamano, H. and Tsuchiya, M. (eds) Proceedings of the 10th International Coral Reef Symposium, Okinawa, 28 June–2 July 2004. Tokyo: Japanese Coral Reef Society, pp. 30–37.Google Scholar
Bianchi, C.N., Pichon, M., Morri, C., Colantoni, P., Benzoni, F., Baldelli, G. and Sandrini, M. (2006b) Le suivi du blanchissement des coraux aux Maldives: leçons à tirer et nouvelles hypothèses. Océanis 29, 325–354.Google Scholar
Carpenter, R.C. and Edmunds, P.J. (2006) Local and regional scale recovery of Diadema promotes recruitment of scleractinian corals. Ecology Letters 9, 271–280.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chornesky, E.A. and Peters, E.C. (1987) Sexual reproduction and colony growth in the scleractinian coral Porites astreoides. Biological Bulletin. Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole 172, 161–177.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Edmunds, P.J. (2000) Patterns in the distribution of juvenile corals and coral reef community structure in St John, US Virgin Islands. Marine Ecology Progress Series 202, 113–124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
English, S., Wilkinson, C. and Baker, V. (1997) Survey manual for tropical marine resources. Townsville, QL: Australian Institute of Marine Science, 390 pp.Google Scholar
Fan, T.Y. and Dai, C.F. (1995) Reproductive ecology of the scleractinian coral Echinopora lamellosa in northern and southern Taiwan. Marine Biology 123, 565–572.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fan, T.Y. and Dai, C.F. (1998) Sexual reproduction of the scleractinian coral Merulina ampliata in southern Taiwan. Bulletin of Marine Science 62, 897–904.Google Scholar
Gischler, E. (2006) Sedimentation on Rasdhoo and Ari Atolls, Maldives, Indian Ocean. Facies 52, 341–360.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glassom, D., Celliers, L. and Schleyer, M.H. (2006) Coral recruitment patterns at Sodwana Bay, South Africa. Coral Reefs 25, 485–492.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glassom, D. and Chadwick, N.E. (2006) Recruitment, growth and mortality of juvenile corals at Eilat, northern Red Sea. Marine Ecology Progress Series 318, 111–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glassom, D., Zakai, D. and Chadwick-Furman, N.E. (2004) Coral recruitment: a spatio-temporal analysis along the coastline of Eilat, northern Red Sea. Marine Biology 144, 641–651.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guzner, B., Novoplansky, A. and Chadwick, N.E. (2007) Population dynamics of the reef-building coral Acropora hemprichii as an indicator of reef condition. Marine Ecology Progress Series 333, 143–150.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harriott, V.J. and Banks, S.A. (1995) Recruitment of scleractinian corals in the Solitary Islands Marine Reserve, a high latitude coral-dominated community in Eastern Australia. Marine Ecology Progress Series 123, 155–161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrison, P.L. and Wallace, C.C. (1990) Reproduction, dispersal and recruitment of scleractinian corals. In Dubinsky, Z. (ed.) Coral reefs. Amsterdam: Elsevier, pp. 133–206.Google Scholar
Hughes, T.P., Baird, A.H., Dinsdale, E.A., Moltschaniwskyj, N.A., Pratchett, M.S., Tanner, J.E. and Willis, B.L. (1999) Patterns of recruitment and abundance of corals along the Great Barrier Reef. Nature 397, 59–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hughes, T.P., Baird, A.H., Dinsdale, E.A., Harriott, V.J., Moltschaniwskyj, N.A., Pratchett, M.S., Tanner, J.E. and Willis, B.L. (2002) Detecting regional variation using meta-analysis and large-scale sampling: latitudinal patterns in recruitment. Ecology 83, 436–451.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hughes, T.P. and Jackson, J.B.C. (1980) Do corals lie about their age? Some demographic consequences of partial mortality, fission and fusion. Science 209, 713–715.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kojis, B.L. and Quinn, N.J. (1981) Aspects of sexual reproduction and larval development in the shallow water hermatypic coral, Goniastrea australensis (Edwards and Haime, 1857). Bulletin of Marine Science 31, 558–573.Google Scholar
Lasagna, R., Albertelli, G., Giovannetti, E., Grondona, M., Milani, A., Morri, C. and Bianchi, C.N. (2008) Status of Maldivian reefs eight years after the 1998 coral mass mortality. Chemistry and Ecology 24 (Supplement 1), 155–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lasagna, R., Albertelli, G., Colantoni, P., Morri, C. and Bianchi, C.N. (2010a) Ecological stages of Maldivian reefs after the coral mass mortality of 1998. Facies 56, 1–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lasagna, R., Albertelli, G., Morri, C. and Bianchi, C.N. (2010b) Acropora abundance and size in the Maldives six years after the 1998 mass mortality: patterns across reef typologies and depths. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 90, 919–922.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McClanahan, T.R. (2000) Bleaching damage and recovery potential of Maldivian coral reefs. Marine Pollution Bulletin 40, 587–597.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McClanahan, T.R., Ateweberhan, M., Graham, N.A.J., Wilson, S.K., Ruiz Sebastián, C., Guillaume, M.M.M. and Bruggemann, J.H. (2007) Western Indian Ocean coral communities: bleaching responses and susceptibility to extinction. Marine Ecology Progress Series 337, 1–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miller, M.W., Weil, E. and Szmant, A.M. (2000) Coral recruitment and juvenile mortality as structuring factors for reef benthic communities in Biscayne National Park, USA. Coral Reefs 19, 115–123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mumby, P.J. (1999) Bleaching and hurricane disturbances to populations of coral recruits in Belize. Marine Ecology Progress Series 190, 27–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mumby, P.J., Harborne, A.R., Williams, J., Kappel, C.V., Brumbaugh, D.R., Micheli, F., Holmes, K.E., Dahlgren, C.P., Paris, C.B. and Blackwell, P.G. (2007) Trophic cascade facilitates coral recruitment in a marine reserve. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 104, 8362–8367.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mundy, C.N. (2000) An appraisal of methods used in coral recruitment studies. Coral Reefs 19, 124–131.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pichon, M. and Benzoni, F. (2007) Taxonomic re-appraisal of zooxanthellate scleractinian corals in the Maldives Archipelago. Zootaxa 1441, 21–33.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rinkevich, B. and Loya, Y. (1979) The reproduction of the Red Sea coral Stylophora pistillata. I. Gonads and planulae. Marine Ecology Progress Series 1, 133–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ritson-Williams, R., Arnold, S.N., Fogarty, N.D., Steneck, R.S., Vermeij, M.J.A. and Paul, V.J. (2009) New perspectives on ecological mechanisms affecting coral recruitment on reefs. In Lang, M.A., Macintyre, I.G. and Rutzler, K. (eds) Proceedings of the Smithsonian Marine Science Symposium, Washington DC, 15–16 November 2007. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, pp. 437–457.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rogers, C.S., Fitz, H.C. III, Gilnack, M., Beets, J. and Hardin, J. (1984) Scleractinian coral recruitment patterns at Salt River Submarine Canyon, St Croix, US Virgin Islands. Coral Reefs 3, 69–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sakai, K. (1998) Effect of colony size, polyp size, and budding mode on egg production in a colonial coral. Biological Bulletin. Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole 195, 319–325.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sammarco, P.W. (1991) Geographically specific recruitment and post-settlement mortality as influences on coral communities: the cross-continental shelf transplant experiment. Limnology and Oceanography 36, 496–514.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vermeij, M.J.A. and Sandin, S.A. (2008) Density-dependent settlement and mortality structure the earliest life phases of a coral population. Ecology 89, 1994–2004.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed