Response of Pocillopora verrucosa to corallivory varies with environmental conditions

Lenihan, Hunter S.; Edmunds, Peter J.

doi:10.3354/meps08595

Cited by 23 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…Microenvironments such as regions of strong and weak current and high and low turbulence that exist around coral colonies may be preferentially utilized by different organisms. Corals grow more rapidly in high flow environments that occur on the tops of large bommies than lower in the water column where flow speeds are slower, most likely due to greater food fluxes and higher rates of mass transfer to coral tissue [ Lenihan and Edmunds , ; Schutter et al ., ]. Measurements in other systems have found that algal cover and morphology can be affected by reduced flow speeds that occur behind protruding bodies and within crevices [ Ferrier and Carpenter , ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moving water also exerts forces on organisms and thus affects the susceptibility to breakage or dislodgement of corals and algae and the energetic cost of occupying a given position on a reef [e.g., Madin and Connolly , ]. Flow can also mediate rates of coral recovery from corallivory and disturbances [ Lenihan and Edmunds , ]. Because many coral reef organisms are sessile or have a very small range, persistent spatial flow patterns can structure their distributions [ Edmunds et al ., ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Observations of spatial flow patterns at the coral colony scale on a shallow reef flat

Hench

Rosman

2013

JGR Oceans

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[1] Although small-scale spatial flow variability can affect both larger-scale circulation patterns and biological processes on coral reefs, there are few direct measurements of spatial flow patterns across horizontal scales <100 m. Here flow patterns on a shallow reef flat were measured at scales from a single colony to several adjacent colonies using an array of acoustic Doppler velocimeters on a diver-operated traverse. We observed recirculation zones immediately behind colonies, reduced currents and elevated dissipation rates in turbulent wakes up to 2 colony diameters downstream and enhanced Reynolds stresses in shear layers around wake peripheries. Flow acceleration zones were observed above and between colonies. Coherent flow structures varied with incident flow speeds; recirculation zones were stronger and wakes were more turbulent in faster flows. Low-frequency (<0.03 Hz) flow variations, for which water excursions were large compared with the colony diameters (Keulegan-Carpenter number, KC >1), had similar spatial patterns to wakes, while higher-frequency variations (0.05-0.1 Hz, KC < 1) had no observable spatial structure. On the reef flat, both drag and inertial forces exerted by coral colonies could have significant effects on flow, but within different frequency ranges; drag dominates for low-frequency flow variations and inertial forces dominate for higherfrequency variations, including the wave band. Our scaling analyses suggest that spatial flow patterns at colony and patch scales could have important implications for both physical and biological processes at larger reef scales through their effects on forces exerted on the flow, turbulent mixing, and dispersion.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of spatial flow patterns at the coral colony scale on a shallow reef flat

Hench

Rosman

2013

JGR Oceans

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“…However, there are no clear patterns in how elevated temperatures affect tissue regeneration in scleractinians. For instance, warmer temperatures have little effect on tissue regeneration in Porites and Pocillopora Lenihan and Edmunds, 2010;Traylor-Knowles, 2016) while increasing wound healing rates in cold water corals (Burmester et al, 2017). Yet elevated temperatures reduce wound healing in Indo-Pacific Acropora spp.…”

Section: Rising Sea Surface Temperaturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Corallivory in the Anthropocene: Interactive Effects of Anthropogenic Stressors and Corallivory on Coral Reefs

2019

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Corallivory is the predation of coral mucus, tissue, and skeleton by fishes and invertebrates, and a source of chronic stress for many reef-building coral species. Corallivores often prey on corals repeatedly, and this predation induces wounds that require extensive cellular resources to heal. The effects of corallivory on coral growth, reproduction, and community dynamics are well-documented, and often result in reduced growth rates and fitness. Given the degree of anthropogenic pressures that threaten coral reefs, it is now imperative to focus on understanding how corallivory interacts with anthropogenic forces to alter coral health and community dynamics. For example, coral bleaching events that stem from global climate change often reduce preferred corals species for many corallivorous fishes. These reductions in preferred prey may result in declines in populations of more specialized corallivores while more generalist corallivores may increase. Corallivory may also make corals more susceptible to thermal stress and exacerbate bleaching. At local scales, overfishing depletes corallivorous fish stocks, reducing fish corallivory and bioerosion, whilst removing invertivorous fishes and allowing population increases in invertebrate corallivores (e.g., urchins, Drupella spp.). Interactive effects of local stressors, such as overfishing and nutrient pollution, can alter the effect of corallivory by increasing coral-algal competition and destabilizing the coral microbiome, subsequently leading to coral disease and mortality. Here, we synthesize recent literature of how global climate change and local stressors affect corallivore populations and shape the patterns and effect of corallivory. Our review indicates that the combined effects of corallivory and anthropogenic pressures may be underappreciated and that these interactions often drive changes in coral reefs on scales from ecosystems to microbes. Understanding the ecology of coral reefs in the Anthropocene will require an increased focus on how anthropogenic forcing alters biotic interactions, such as corallivory, and the resulting cascading effects on corals and reef ecosystems.

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“…Corallivorous fish can impede coral recovery from natural perturbations (Rotjan et al 2006), especially juvenile branching acroporid corals (Knowlton et al 1990), which many corallivores favor (Cole et al 2008). Several studies have identified abiotic conditions that influence corallivore-coral interactions, such as water depth (e.g., Miller and Hay 1998) and habitat structure (Wellington 1982, Littler et al 1989, Lenihan and Edmunds 2010, Lenihan et al 2011. Despite this substantial body of work, we still have a poor understanding of how abiotic conditions and biotic processes interact to determine the distribution and abundance of benthic organisms, especially in coral reef communities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To do this, we manipulated the access of corallivorous fishes to coral nubbins by using cages (Àpredator treatment) and cage controls (þpredator treatments, composed of partial cages); corals at each site were randomly assigned to treatments. Cages consisted of six-sided enclosures (15 3 15 3 15 cm) made of Vexar plastic (1-cm mesh size; Vexar Plastics, Los Angeles, California, USA), and cage controls were the same design but with two sides missing to allow corallivorous fishes access while exposing corals to hydrodynamic conditions similar to those within cages (Lenihan and Edmunds 2010). We used this size of predator exclusion cages and cage controls because, in a preliminary test, we observed butterflyfishes and other corallivores, especially spot-fin porcupinefish, whitespotted puffer, and the orange-striped triggerfish, biting branching corals within the cage controls, with all but the butterflyfishes leaving distinctive lesions.…”

Section: Effects Of Hydrodynamics On Coral Growthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrodynamics influence coral performance through simultaneous direct and indirect effects

Lenihan

Hench

Holbrook

et al. 2015

Ecology

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Abstract. Hydrodynamic conditions can influence the distribution and abundance of aquatic species in many ways, including directly through disturbance and resource delivery, and indirectly by altering environmental cues and species interactions. In coral reef ecosystems, corallivory is an important top-down control of coral populations, while water motion can enhance coral performance via autotrophic and/or heterotrophic pathways. Using a large-scale field assay in Mo'orea, French Polynesia, we measured the extent to which the growth of a branching acroporid coral is influenced by hydrodynamics that deliver nutrients and food to corals but also impede corallivory. We explored two hydrodynamic properties that characterized our study system, mean current velocity and current velocity fluctuation (a measure of waves and turbulence). In treatments where predators were excluded, coral skeletal growth was positively related to mean current velocity, whereas no effect of velocity fluctuations was detected. In the presence of predators, growth was positively related to velocity fluctuations, but no relationship with mean velocity was detected. The major effect of velocity fluctuations was to reduce the attack rate of corallivores by lowering both their per capita bite rate and local density. Corals thus benefited directly from increased currents, probably through enhanced autotrophy and/or heterotrophy, and indirectly from velocity fluctuations through reduced corallivory. Our data indicate that for the coral and locale we examined, the indirect hydrodynamic effect on coral performance via reduction in corallivory was substantial, increasing daily growth rate by 4%. Hydrodynamic enhancement of acroporid coral growth via simultaneous direct and indirect effects can be important for the persistence of coral reefs as well as their recovery following disturbance.

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Response of Pocillopora verrucosa to corallivory varies with environmental conditions

Cited by 23 publications

References 74 publications

Observations of spatial flow patterns at the coral colony scale on a shallow reef flat

Observations of spatial flow patterns at the coral colony scale on a shallow reef flat

Corallivory in the Anthropocene: Interactive Effects of Anthropogenic Stressors and Corallivory on Coral Reefs

Hydrodynamics influence coral performance through simultaneous direct and indirect effects

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