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Tropical coral reef ecosystems are very important from both the ecological and economical points of view. However, they are also particularly fragile, and have been declining in recent years in most regions of the world, since they are highly susceptible to anthropogenic stressors operating at global scales (e.g., global warming and ocean acidification) and local scales (e.g., pollution/eutrophication, fishing, overcommercialization for recreation). Coral reef ecosystems are complex communities with very high species diversity. Most reef species have a bipartite life history with a planktonic larval stage and a benthic associated adult life. Therefore most adult reef organisms are distributed in metapopulations connected by pelagic larvae that disperse subject to the ocean currents. Knowledge of population connectivity among individual reef habitats within a broader geographic region of coral reefs has been identified as key to developing efficient spatial management strategies to protect marine ecosystems. The study of larval connectivity of marine organisms is a complex multidisciplinary challenge that is difficult to address with direct observations. This research examines the temporal and spatial, physical and ecological processes influencing connectivity of two important coral reef genera among isolated reef habitats within two regions: the Kenyan-Tanzanian and the Western Caribbean coasts. High resolution ocean circulation models were developed for each region and coupled to individual based models (IBM) that track particles (virtual larvae) released from each reef habitat. The connectivity patterns for two coral reef species groups having contrasting larval behavior and development duration where characterized in the two study regions: Acropora, a genus of branching corals with passive larvae and fast development (pelagic larval duration (PLD)12 days), and Acanthurus, a genus of highly mobile, herbivorous fish, with long PLD (50 days). Additional simulations were done to represent better the complexity of the Acanthurus larval life: one experiment included an idealized ontogenetic vertical migration behavior; another experiment examined how temperature-determined larval duration influenced trajectories and settlement patterns. The more complicated behavioral and development models were evaluated by comparing connectivity matrices to the passively transported case. To investigate interannual variations in connectivity patterns and percentage of successful settlement experiments were done for two contrasting years 2000 and 2005. Environmental seasonal and interannual variability in the ocean circulation models was analyzed to detect the mechanisms controlling connectivity in the two regions. The connectivity patterns and the mechanisms causing them were compared among the two study regions. Results are interpreted in the context of marine spatial management, describing the implications of the modeled connectivity patterns for currently established Marine Protected Areas. The connectivity patterns, and the processes controlling connectivity for different taxa, provide policy relevant scientific information that enables managers and decision-makers to make more informed choices regarding the size, spacing and optimal spatial design of marine protected networks.
In light of climate change and allied changes to marine ecosystems, mathematical models have become an important tool to examine processes and predict phenomena from local through to global scales. In recent years model studies, laboratory experiments and a better ecological understanding of the pelagic ecosystem have enabled advancements on fundamental challenges in oceanography, including marine production, biodiversity and anticipation of future conditions in the ocean. This research topic presents a number of studies that investigate functionally diverse organism in a dynamic ocean through diverse and novel modeling approaches.
An approach that encompasses the human and natural dimensions of ecosystems is one that the Wider Caribbean Region knows it must adopt and implement, in order to ensure the sustainable use of the region's shared marine resources. This volume contributes towards that vision, bringing together the collective knowledge and experience of scholars and practitioners within the Wider Caribbean to begin the process of assembling a road map towards marine ecosystem based management (EBM) for the region. It also serves a broader purpose of providing stakeholders and policy actors in each of the world's sixty-four Large Marine Ecosystems, with a comparative example of the challenges and information needs required to implement principled ocean governance generally and marine EBM in particular, at multiple levels. Additionally, the volume serves to supplement the training of graduate level students in the marine sciences by enhancing interdisciplinary understanding of challenges in implementing marine EBM.
This is the first book to provide a detailed treatment of the field of larval ecology. The 13 chapters use state-of-the-art reviews and critiques of nearly all of the major topics in this diverse and rapidly growing field. Topics include: patterns of larval diversity, reproductive energetics, spawning ecology, life history theory, larval feeding and nutrition, larval mortality, behavior and locomotion, larval transport, dispersal, population genetics, recruitment dynamics and larval evolution. Written by the leading new scientists in the field, chapters define the current state of larval ecology and outline the important questions for future research.
Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCE) are defined as phototrophic coral habitats found deeper than 30 m. Despite being aware of these ecosystems for over 200 years, surprisingly little information is available on their ecology and biology. Recently, MCE have received renewed interest, as it appears that depth and distance from shore have the potential to buffer coral organisms from the detrimental effects of coastal development and climate change. The "deep reef refugia hypothesis" (DRRH) is an umbrella term for a collection of hypotheses concerning the role of MCE in the uncertain future of coral reefs, yet our predictions are limited by shortcomings in our understanding of some very basic effects of depth on corals and associated communities. In order to investigate the effects of depth on coral reproductive biology, sampling of Montastraea faveolata and Porites astreoides coral tissues was conducted along a depth gradient from 5 to 40 m during coral reproductive seasons in the Northern United States Virgin Islands (USVI), and observations of coral spawning and planulation were made. Samples were histologically analyzed for gamete development, reproductive activity and fecundity. Mesophotic populations of both M. faveolata and P. astreoides were reproductively active in MCE with similar gametogenic cycles to nearby shallow coral populations. There was evidence of M. faveolata split spawning in August and September at all depths, and oocyte development was delayed but more rapid in mesophotic corals. M. faveolata fecundities were significantly higher in MCE (35-40 m) than in shallow (5-10 m) sites, but the differences were not significant between mid-depth (15-22 m) and either shallow or mesophotic sites. There was no difference found in P. astreoides fecundity between mesophotic, mid-depth and shallow sites, however planulation appeared to be delayed in mesophotic colonies by 1-2 weeks. Differences in fecundity per area and coral cover between depths determine the number of propagules a unit reef will produce at different depths. In the case of M. faveolata, ova production is likely an order of magnitude greater at 35 m than at 10 m. The Connectivity Modeling System, an individual-based stochastic biophysical model of larval dispersal, parameterized with depth-specific productivity estimates and species-specific reproductive seasons and larval traits, was used to evaluate the vertical connectivity of M. faveolata and P. astreoides larvae between MCE and shallow coral habitats in the Northern USVI. Sensitivity analyses were performed to test the sensitivity of mesophotic larval subsidy into shallow habitats to depth-specific productivity, pelagic larval mortality, depth-specific fertilization rates and depth-specific post-settlement survivorship. Simulated mesophotic subsidies to shallow recruitment were found to be considerably robust, and mesophotic subsidy to shallow recruitment accounted for a greater proportion of total recruitment as shallow productivity was reduced. Even when modeled mesophotic fertilization rates and larval post-settlement survivorship were dramatically reduced, the model predicted what would likely be demographically significant mesophotic larval subsidy into shallow habitat. Mesophotic M. faveolata skeletal density, extension and calcification were estimated using micro-computed tomography. Results suggest that rates of linear extension of M. faveolata in USVI MCE may be quite fast compared to other Caribbean MCE, and that total calcification in MCE may rival shallow coral calcification. Lastly, consistencies and inconsistencies in the population connectivity of two coral and three fish constituent species in Caribbean coral reef assemblages were investigated using a nested biophysical model. Connectivity networks of coral species were more fragmented than fish, and the networks of corals and fish showed different patterns of betweenness centrality. This suggests that populations of corals and fish will likely be affected by habitat fragmentation in different ways, and that they require specific management consideration. This dissertation suggests that MCE are integral to the population connectivity of corals in the USVI and likely to wider Caribbean metapopulation connectivity as well. Further study of these highly productive ecosystems is necessary to better understand the DRRH and the role of MCE in the past, present and future of coral reefs.
This volume is a complete review and reference work for scientists, engineers, and students concerned with coral reefs in the Red Sea. It provides an up-to-date review on the geology, ecology, and physiology of coral reef ecosystems in the Red Sea, including data from most recent molecular studies. The Red Sea harbours a set of unique ecological characteristics, such as high temperature, high alkalinity, and high salinity, in a quasi-isolated environment. This makes it a perfect laboratory to study and understand adaptation in regard to the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems. This book can be used as a general reference, guide, or textbook.
Technological improvements have greatly increased the ability of marine scientists to collect and analyze data over large spatial scales, and the resultant insights attainable from interpreting those data vastly increase understanding of poplation dynamics, evolution and biogeography. Marine Metapopulations provides a synthesis of existing information and understanding, and frames the most important future directions and issues. - First book to systematically apply metapopulation theory directly to marine systems - Contributions from leading international ecologists and fisheries biologists - Perspectives on a broad array of marine organisms and ecosystems, from coastal estuaries to shallow reefs to deep-sea hydrothermal vents - Critical science for improved management of marine resources - Paves the way for future research on large-scale spatial ecology of marine systems
This book summarizes what is known about mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) geographically and by major taxa. MCEs are characterized by light-dependent corals and associated communities typically found at depths ranging from 30-40 m. and extending to over 150 m. in tropical and subtropical ecosystems. They are populated with organisms typically associated with shallow coral reefs, such as macroalgae, corals, sponges, and fishes, as well as specialist species unique to mesophotic depths. During the past decade, there has been an increasing scientific and management interest in MCEs expressed by the exponential increase in the number of publications studying this unique environment. Despite their close proximity to well-studied shallow reefs, and the growing evidence of their importance, our scientific knowledge of MCEs is still in its early stages. The topics covered in the book include: regional variation in MCEs; similarities and differences between mesophotic and shallow reef taxa, biotic and abiotic conditions, biodiversity, ecology, geomorphology, and geology; potential connectivity between MCEs and shallow reefs; MCE disturbances, conservation, and management challenges; and new technologies, key research questions/knowledge gaps, priorities, and future directions in MCE research.
This book is geared for advanced level research in the general subject area of remote sensing and modeling as they apply to the coastal marine environment. The various chapters focus on the latest scientific and technical advances in the service of better understanding coastal marine environments for their care, conservation and management. Chapters specifically deal with advances in remote sensing coastal classifications, environmental monitoring, digital ocean technological advances, geophysical methods, geoacoustics, X-band radar, risk assessment models, GIS applications, real-time modeling systems, and spatial modeling. Readers will find this book useful because it summarizes applications of new research methods in one of the world’s most dynamic and complicated environments. Chapters in this book will be of interest to specialists in the coastal marine environment who deals with aspects of environmental monitoring and assessment via remote sensing techniques and numerical modeling.