Coral nurseries as habitats for juvenile corallivorous butterflyfish

Taira, Daisuke; Toh, Tai Chong; Sam, Shu Qin; Ng, Csl; Chou, Loke Ming

doi:10.1007/s12526-016-0513-2

Cited by 12 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…Corallivorous fishes such as butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae) can be positively affected by the addition of live coral cover due to increasing food availability (Cole & Pratchett, 2014;Hourigan et al, 1988). Taira et al (2017) reported that coral nurseries were adequate habitats for juvenile Chaetodon octofasciatus, where their densities were higher than at nearby natural reefs. Predation on coral, while providing an important food source for reef fishes, is however a concern in reef restoration projects, where new coral transplants are particularly vulnerable to native predators and other disturbances (Edwards & Gomez, 2007;Jayewardene et al, 2009;Omori, 2005).…”

Section: Corallivorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Interactions between coral restoration and fish assemblages: implications for reef management

Seraphim

Sloman

Alexander

et al. 2020

Journal of Fish Biology

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Corals create complex reef structures that provide both habitat and food for many fish species. Because of numerous natural and anthropogenic threats, many coral reefs are currently being degraded, endangering the fish assemblages they support. Coral reef restoration, an active ecological management tool, may help reverse some of the current trends in reef degradation through the transplantation of stony corals. Although restoration techniques have been extensively reviewed in relation to coral survival, our understanding of the effects of adding live coral cover and complexity on fishes is in its infancy with a lack of scientifically validated research. This study reviews the limited data on reef restoration and fish assemblages, and complements this with the more extensive understanding of complex interactions between natural reefs and fishes and how this might inform restoration efforts. It also discusses which key fish species or functional groups may promote, facilitate or inhibit restoration efforts and, in turn, how restoration efforts can be optimised to enhance coral fish assemblages. By highlighting critical knowledge gaps in relation to fishes and restoration interactions, the study aims to stimulate research into the role of reef fishes in restoration projects. A greater understanding of the functional roles of reef fishes would also help inform whether restoration projects can return fish assemblages to their natural compositions or whether alternative species compositions develop, and over what timeframe. Although alleviation of local and global reef stressors remains a priority, reef restoration is an important tool; an increased understanding of the interactions between replanted corals and the fishes they support is critical for ensuring its success for people and nature.

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Section: Corallivorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Interactions between coral restoration and fish assemblages: implications for reef management

Seraphim

Sloman

Alexander

et al. 2020

Journal of Fish Biology

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“…Instead, our findings demonstrated that E. horrida yield is best augmented via nursery rearing. Concurrently, ecosystem functions such as habitat and food provision for other reef organisms will also be enhanced by growing corals in the nursery (Taira et al 2017; Wee et al 2019). For future coral restoration projects employing E. horrida , alternative attachment methods such as Coralclip (Suggett et al 2020) or Reef Nails (Schmidt‐Roach et al 2023) could be tested to potentially reduce transplant detachment and increase survivorship to improve overall restoration success rate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Propagating the stony coral Echinopora horrida: evaluating the effects of rearing environment and transplant orientation

Sam,

Ng,

Kikuzawa

et al. 2024

Restoration Ecology

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The “coral gardening” approach has been effective in facilitating the recovery of degraded reefs but methodological variations can influence survivorship and growth of the coral material. In addition, the disproportionate use of certain corals, such as acroporids and pocilloporids, has contributed to a general lack of information on growth patterns and restoration strategies for species that are less common. To investigate how the yield of other species may be increased to support reef restoration efforts in Singapore, we assessed the effects of (1) environment (nursery, reef, and seawall) and (2) transplant orientation (horizontal and vertical) on the performance of Echinopora horrida (Dana, 1846) fragments. Fragments secured in the coral nursery grew significantly faster and survived better than those transplanted on the reef and seawall, highlighting the importance of a nursery‐rearing phase in optimizing the yield of this species. Additionally, survivorship and growth rates were not significantly different between vertically and horizontally transplanted corals, suggesting that modifying transplant orientation was less crucial toward enhancing coral yield. Our findings highlighted the need to optimize the propagation techniques of a wider range of understudied coral species in order to preserve their genetic diversity in the face of anthropogenic and climatic impacts.

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“…The coral nurseries also supported abundant and diverse marine organisms [26]. Reef organisms such as juvenile eight-banded butterflyfish, juvenile harlequin sweetlips, chocolate hind and stellate puffer were observed utilizing the coral fragments and nursery structures for food and shelter (see Taira et al, (2016) [27]; fig. 3).…”

Section: Fig 2 Naturally Recruited Coral Colonies (A) and Juvenile mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relevance of Reef Restoration in the Continually Changing Marine Environment of Singapore

Chou

Sam

Toh

et al. 2018

JMST

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Singapore"s marine environment has changed significantly over the past five decades through coastal modification and intense human activities. More than 60% of its coral reefs have been lost to land reclamation and the remaining reefs remain exposed to increased sedimentation. Reef restoration to address habitat loss and degradation is considered viable under the changing environmental conditions based on the persisting annual coral mass spawning events, active recruitment, high species diversity and recovery from mass bleaching impacts. These ecological attributes indicate that reef ecosystem integrity is still functioning and restoration measures are relevant. An analysis of past and ongoing restoration initiatives indicates their effectiveness in improving degraded reefs as well as establishing new reef communities on modified coasts.

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Coral nurseries as habitats for juvenile corallivorous butterflyfish

Cited by 12 publications

References 2 publications

Interactions between coral restoration and fish assemblages: implications for reef management

Interactions between coral restoration and fish assemblages: implications for reef management

Propagating the stony coral Echinopora horrida: evaluating the effects of rearing environment and transplant orientation

The Relevance of Reef Restoration in the Continually Changing Marine Environment of Singapore

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