Category Archives: coral reef ecology

climate change, coral reef ecology, reef conservation

Environmental Sustainability: Graham, N.A.J., Cinner, J. E., Norström, A.E., Nyström, M. 2013. Coral reefs as novel ecosystems: embracing new futures

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Reef corals such as staghorn corals have been damaged due to overfishing, disease and global warming. Novel systems formed in their absence requires a new thinking on management and conservation, a new study argues. Photo: B. Christensen/Azote

Coral reefs — Back to the future:  Unrealistic to think coral reefs can return to pristine conditions, more pragmatic management approaches needed

Few, if any of the world’s coral reefs have been left untouched by humans. While it might still be possible to restore some damaged reefs to their historic function, a growing number of them may are now turning into “novel ecosystems”. Realising this might help researchers and managers to set up more sensible goals.

This is the conclusion by a team of scientists from the Stockholm Resilience Centre and James Cook University who recently published in Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability.

“It is unfortunately unrealistic to think coral reefs can return to pristine conditions, realising this enables more pragmatic approaches to maintaining or re-building the dominance of corals,” explains centre researcher Albert Norström, one of the authors of the study.

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One well-known example is how most Caribbean coral reefs have changed due to overfishing, disease and global warming. This has greatly reduced the abundance of large branching elkhorn and staghorn corals, which are very unlikely to become dominant again in the future. The novel systems formed in their absence are often dominated by leaf-like or plate-like corals.

Forward thinking research
Some fear that raising the issue of novel ecosystems might pave the way for a more laissez-faire attitude to conservation and restoration, that it could be misused and justify inaction. However, even though many coral reefs are changing beyond full repair they may still provide valuable goods and services, like fish production and shoreline protection.

Consequently, there is a need for forward-thinking research to understand the properties of these emerging ecosystems.

So far, most work on novel ecosystems has been done on land, but given the increasing human impact on a range of coastal and marine ecosystems, the scientists argue that a need to evaluate whether the concept is also applicable to the marine environment.

Embrace change
With coral reefs changing in unprecedented ways due to greenhouse gas emissions, overfishing, pollution and other threats, we must change our understanding of reefs as well, argue the authors of the new study. This means embracing change and exploring how human societies can adapt and respond to novel futures.

“We are by no means suggesting that current management and conservation activities should be abandoned, but rather highlight the need to re-evaluate our actions and goals,” explains centre researcher and co-author Magnus Nyström.

Novelty can mean hope
In some cases, novel coral reefs are not only a bad thing. For example, due to changes in temperature, reef corals in Japan have been extending their range northward at rates of up to 14 kilometres per year, generating new reef structures along these coastlines. Similar development has been seen in the Australian Great Barrier Reef  and in the Caribbean. This will of course influence the already existing systems at these latitudes, but not necessarily only in the negative sense.

“The emergence of novel coral reef configurations gives some hope that coral reefs may persist if the grand challenges facing them are rapidly tackled,” the authors write.

Undoubtedly, coral reefs will look different in the future. Most likely, management and scientific research will need to change as well if we want to save some kind of reef-like systems and the services they might generate to us humans.

“Understanding what kind of coral reef configurations that are possible and how best to manage them represent major gaps in our current scientific understanding of coral reefs,” Albert Norström concludes.

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Graham, N.A.J., Cinner, J. E., Norström, A.E., Nyström, M. 2013. Coral reefs as novel ecosystems: embracing new futures, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 7, April 2014, Pages 9-14, ISSN 1877-3435, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2013.11.023

Albert Norström is research coordinator for the Programme on Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS) and is currently assessing and predicting regional coral reef resilience in the Hawaiian archipelago.

Magnus Nyström’s research is focused on the effects from human interventions, such as climate change, overfishing (including trade) and pollution, on ecosystem functions and processes – and how this impacts on resilience in ecological and social-ecological systems.

coral reef ecology

Coral-list: Lionfish control study

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January 31, 2014

Dear listers,

I’m writing to alert you of a study we’ve just published on the effect of invasive lionfish control on native reef fish communities in the Atlantic: http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/13-0979.1.

Our work 1) looks at whether suppressing lionfish at local scales results in the recovery and protection of resident prey fishes, and 2) develops a model for estimating targets for control, based on the degree to which lionfish abundance must be reduced to alleviate predation effects. The study took place on 24 patch reefs in the Bahamas, each ~150m2and harboring an average of 30 lionfish, where we reduced lionfish to target abundances through monthly culling. Over 18 months, the biomass of native prey fishes increased an average 50-70% on reefs where lionfish numbers were suppressed below levels predicted to cause prey depletion. On the reefs we studied, this equated to removing 75-95% of lionfish. On reefs where lionfish numbers remained higher than target levels, the biomass of prey fishes decreased by a further 50%. While complete eradication of lionfish from the Caribbean is not likely, groups are actively culling them from coastal areas (mostly via spear and net). Our study is a first step in showing that strategic local efforts that suppress the invasion to low levels can help protect and recover native fish communities affected by lionfish.
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This research was conducted at the Cape Eleuthera Institute in collaboration with Simon Fraser University, the Cape Eleuthera Institute, and Reef Environmental Education Foundation.

If you have questions about this work or would like a copy of the article, please email me at stephanie.green@science.oregonstate.edu.

coral reef ecology, reef conservation

Sunscreen Chemical in Soaps, Cosmetics, & Body Fragrances Threaten Coral Reefs, says Haereticus

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Sunscreen Chemical in Soaps, Cosmetics, & Body Fragrances Threaten Coral Reefs, says Haereticus

Industry: Environment

A scientific study to be published shows that a chemical in soaps, cosmetics and body fragrances threatens coral reef conservation and may prohibit recovery of coral reef

Virginia, U.S.A. (PRUnderground) January 15th, 2014

A team of marine scientists from Virginia, Florida, Israel, and the U.S. National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration published a study demonstrating that a common UV absorber found in over 380 different product lines of soaps, laundry detergents, cosmetics, and body fragrances is highly toxic to corals. This chemical, benzophenone-2, commonly known as “BP-2”, is released into the environment through discharges from municipal, residential, and boat/ship waste-water and sewage. Once in the environment, BP-2 can quickly kill juvenile corals at very low concentrations – parts per billion. Furthermore, it can cause corals to bleach – a process where corals that are normally, pink, yellow, purple and brown turn white – often resulting in coral mortality. These researchers also discovered that BP-2 was potentially mutagenic to corals by causing damage to its DNA. BP-2 is similar to oxybenzone, the active ingredient found in many sunscreen lotions sold over the counter today.

What does this mean to coral reef conservation and how does this contribute to the staggering rate of coral reef degradation? One example is the devastation of coral reefs in the Caribbean and Florida Keys. Over 80% of coral reefs in the Caribbean have disappeared since the early 1960s. A vast majority of these reefs are coastal, near-shore reefs. According to the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, the top three causes of coral reef decline are pollution, abnormally high sea temperatures, and over-exploitation of coral reef resources.

• Benzophenone-2 has been used in personal-care products since the 1960s, the beginning of the “chemical pollution revolution.”

• BP-2 is not removed from most municipal wastewater treatment facilities, and for many islands in the Caribbean, as well as in the IndoPacific, this discharge is often released within 500 yards of near-shore coral reefs.

• Residential septic systems and cesspits can also be major contributors to releasing BP-2 onto near-shore coral reefs.

• Growing human population and activity in the Caribbean and IndoPacific (e.g., Hawaii, Maldives) also means increased waste-water pollution in the coral reef environment – suggesting that environmental pollution of BP-2 levels have increased over time.

• Increasing BP-2 pollution of the marine environment is a serious threat to coral reef restoration efforts and may be a significant factor in why there has been almost no recovery of coral reefs along many of these degraded coasts.

Dr. C.A. Downs, Executive Director of Haereticus Environmental Lab (HEL) who led the research stated that, “Pollution of coral reefs, as a major cause of coral reef degradation, has been intentionally ignored. The irony is that pollution is also the easiest factor to recognize and mitigate. Until we can address the problem of pollution, there is little hope in restoring vibrant communities of coral reefs. In the case of BP-2 pollution, there are a range of options that can be considered for reducing its impact to reefs – from working with manufacturers and innovating more environmentally sustainable products to educating consumers regarding product selection and product disposal.”

Feedback from the scientific community-

Joseph DiNardo, a toxicologist who spent 37 years developing and safety-testing skincare products for several large cosmetic and pharmaceutical corporations, after reading the results of this groundbreaking study stated, “We have overpopulated our world not just with people, we have overpopulated our world with toxic substances—toxic substances we know nothing about. We need to know about the impact these chemicals have on our environment, and unfortunately, we don’t.”

Dr. Michael Risk, a professor of coral reef biology and geology, professed that, “This is more bad news for coral reefs, more evidence of the pervasive and pressing impacts of land-based sources of pollution. The results show that something humans use to protect their skin or toiletries can reach the sea from wastewater discharges, and shut down coral reproduction. In affected areas, the shutdown of larval (juvenile coral) survival means that there soon will be only a few ancient corals staggering on: and when some accident or storm or yacht takes them out, there will be no recovery.”

The scientific article can be e-accessed at the following website: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10646-013-1161-y#

Downs CA, Kramarsky-Winter E, Fauth JE, Segal R, Bronstein O, Jeger R, Lichtenfeld Y, Woodley CM, Pennington P, Kushmaro A, Loya Y. Toxicological effects of the sunscreen UV filter, benzophenone-2, on planula and in vitro cells of the coral, Stylophora pistillata. Ecotoxicology. DOI 10.1007/s10646-013-1161-y

About Haereticus Environmental Laboratory – Haereticus Environmental Laboratory (HEL) is a nonprofit, scientific organization dedicated to increasing scientific, social and economic knowledge of environmental habitats in order to better conserve and restore threatened habitats, resources and ecosystems. Visit www.haereticus-lab.org to learn more about our work.

climate change, coral reef ecology, oceanography

E&E: A largely unmapped food resource continues to shrink — study

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Daniel Lippman, E&E reporter
Published: Friday, January 10, 2014

Japan, Greece and the Philippines are among the countries that enjoy
lots of marine biodiversity but are at highest risk of damage from
human impacts like overfishing, marine pollution and climate change,
according to a new study.

There are varying estimates of how many species are in the world’s
oceans (2.2 million is a common estimate), but the vast majority of
them have never been seen or named by scientists. Decreases in marine
biodiversity can threaten coastal protection services and ecosystem
services like fisheries.

The new study used a database of where 12,500 marine species are
located and combined the data with maps of where human impacts are
having major negative effects on oceans. With limited resources to
protect the ocean, finding out which areas have the most marine species
and are at highest risk can help policymakers decide how to prioritize.

“Our results emphasize the importance of both developing policies that
promote sustainable fisheries management and that also reduce the human
activities responsible for climate change,” said Elizabeth Selig, the
study’s lead author.

For Japan, the risks to its coral reef species and cold-water species
include fishing, climate change and shipping pollution. For Greece,
risks include overfishing and runoff from land pollution. Marine
species in the Philippines are threatened by shipping traffic pollution
and damaging practices such as dynamite fishing.

Where protein supplies are at risk

The oceans that are most at risk include the southwest Indian Ocean,
the Mediterranean and Baltic seas, and the so-called Coral Triangle in
Southeast Asia.

According to the Convention on Biological Diversity, fish and marine
invertebrates provide more than 2.6 billion people with at least a
fifth of their protein intake. A major loss of marine biodiversity
could threaten parts of that food source.

Selig, director of marine science at Conservation International, warned
that high temperatures can particularly affect coral reef systems in
the tropics where, when temperatures are high enough for an extended
period of time, it can cause coral bleaching and coral deaths.

“Because those corals are the foundation on which all the species in
those regions depend, coral deaths can lead to a major ecosystem
collapse,” she said in a telephone interview.

However, the news isn’t all bad, and there are opportunities to protect
marine biodiversity. Areas that have lots of marine biodiversity but
are relatively unaffected by human activities include southern Africa,
Australia and South America, according to Selig.

She acknowledged that there can be natural changes in species
composition but said “the levels of change now are really unprecedented
and a real cause for concern.”

The study was published this week in PLOS ONE.

Special thanks to Richard Charter
coral reef ecology, reef conservation

ENN: Human values and coral reef management

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From: Robin Blackstone, ENN
Published December 16, 2013 11:12 AM

 

“Human values need to be considered in decision-making to improve long-term coral reef management” says Dr. Christina Hicks, research fellow from Stanford. Researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) at James Cook University and Stanford University are linking social science to ecology in order to improve the environmental problems in these sensitive ecosystems. Currently little thought is given to the human community’s needs including food and wellbeing for the more powerful economic interests, such as tourism, which drives coral reef management.

Yet the fishers in the local community play an essential role in coral reef ecology management. Dr. Nick Graham, senior research fellow at the ARC CoECRS says a lack of ‘ownership’ of reef resources for fishers, who depend on fish for their food and livelihoods, underlies a main area of conflict and their priorities need to be considered when managing these natural environments.

Resultantly Hicks and Graham led a study to focus on measuring and comparing the priorities of various coral reef ecosystem stakeholders including managers, scientists and fishers. Fundamentally all groups agreed that fishery, education, and habitat were high priorities but each group prioritized a little differently reflecting the conflict. Managers prioritized culture over the scientists’ priority for coastal protection and fishers’ prioritized fishery and fish education. Managers’ priorities were ultimately more aligned with scientists’ than with fishers but the extent of their agreement differed significantly.

The group believes that measuring ecosystem service priorities would highlight key areas of agreement and conflict, both within and across stakeholder groups. In this way each concern would be reflected when communicating and determining management approach for the coral reef’s ecosystem.

Using network analysis to map interactions between stakeholders’ priorities, distinct synergies and trade-offs were identified in how ecosystem services were administered. For fishers, trade-offs emerged between two services, both of a higher priority: fishery and habitat. Conversely, for scientists, trade-offs emerged between services of a higher and lower priority: habitat and culture. The trade-offs and synergies that emerged for the managers overlap with both fishers and scientists suggesting a potential brokering role for managers in balancing priorities and conflicts for all groups.

“Communities that are engaged and recognized are more likely to trust and support their management agencies,” adds Dr. Hicks. Governments who consult local communities to develop co-management plans generally reduce conflict; see increased livelihood and ecological benefits (such as a rise in fish stocks) in their area. Presently countries like Papua New Guinea and Kenya have successful arrangements.

Read more at ARC Centre of Excellence Coral Reef Studies.

Coral Reef image via Shutterstock.