1
|
Cannon SE, Donner SD, Liu A, González Espinosa PC, Baird AH, Baum JK, Bauman AG, Beger M, Benkwitt CE, Birt MJ, Chancerelle Y, Cinner JE, Crane NL, Denis V, Depczynski M, Fadli N, Fenner D, Fulton CJ, Golbuu Y, Graham NAJ, Guest J, Harrison HB, Hobbs JPA, Hoey AS, Holmes TH, Houk P, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Jompa J, Kuo CY, Limmon GV, Lin YV, McClanahan TR, Muenzel D, Paddack MJ, Planes S, Pratchett MS, Radford B, Reimer JD, Richards ZT, Ross CL, Rulmal J, Sommer B, Williams GJ, Wilson SK. Macroalgae exhibit diverse responses to human disturbances on coral reefs. Glob Chang Biol 2023; 29:3318-3330. [PMID: 37020174 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Scientists and managers rely on indicator taxa such as coral and macroalgal cover to evaluate the effects of human disturbance on coral reefs, often assuming a universally positive relationship between local human disturbance and macroalgae. Despite evidence that macroalgae respond to local stressors in diverse ways, there have been few efforts to evaluate relationships between specific macroalgae taxa and local human-driven disturbance. Using genus-level monitoring data from 1205 sites in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, we assess whether macroalgae percent cover correlates with local human disturbance while accounting for factors that could obscure or confound relationships. Assessing macroalgae at genus level revealed that no genera were positively correlated with all human disturbance metrics. Instead, we found relationships between the division or genera of algae and specific human disturbances that were not detectable when pooling taxa into a single functional category, which is common to many analyses. The convention to use percent cover of macroalgae as an indication of local human disturbance therefore likely obscures signatures of local anthropogenic threats to reefs. Our limited understanding of relationships between human disturbance, macroalgae taxa, and their responses to human disturbances impedes the ability to diagnose and respond appropriately to these threats.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sara E Cannon
- Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Simon D Donner
- Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Angela Liu
- Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Pedro C González Espinosa
- Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Andrew H Baird
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
| | - Julia K Baum
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria, Canada
| | - Andrew G Bauman
- Department of Marine and Environmental Science, Nova Southeastern University, Florida, Dania Beach, USA
| | - Maria Beger
- School of Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
- Department of Aquatic Resources Management, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science, Pattimura University, Ambon, Indonesia
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, University of Queensland, Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
| | | | - Matthew J Birt
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Yannick Chancerelle
- CRIOBE, UAR 3278 CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, Moorea French Polynesia and the French Center for Excellence for Coral Reefs (LabEx Corail), PSL Research University, Paris, France
| | - Joshua E Cinner
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
| | - Nicole L Crane
- One People One Reef, California, Santa Cruz, USA
- Department of Biology, Cabrillo College, California, Aptos, USA
| | - Vianney Denis
- Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Martial Depczynski
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Nur Fadli
- Faculty of Marine and Fisheries, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia
| | | | | | | | | | - James Guest
- School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Hugo B Harrison
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Jean-Paul A Hobbs
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Andrew S Hoey
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
| | - Thomas H Holmes
- Marine Science Program, Biodiversity and Conservation Science, Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions, Western Australia, Kensington, Australia
| | - Peter Houk
- University of Guam Marine Laboratory, UOG Station, Mangilao, Guam
| | | | - Jamaluddin Jompa
- Department of Marine Science and Fisheries, Hasanuddin University, South Sulawesi, Makassar, Indonesia
| | - Chao-Yang Kuo
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Gino Valentino Limmon
- Department of Marine Biology, Pattimura University, Ambon, Indonesia
- Maritime and Marine Science Centre of Excellence, Pattimura University, Ambon, Indonesia
| | - Yuting V Lin
- Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | | | - Dominic Muenzel
- School of Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Michelle J Paddack
- One People One Reef, California, Santa Cruz, USA
- Santa Barbara City College, California, Santa Barbara, USA
| | - Serge Planes
- CRIOBE, UAR 3278 CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, Moorea French Polynesia and the French Center for Excellence for Coral Reefs (LabEx Corail), PSL Research University, Paris, France
| | - Morgan S Pratchett
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland, Townsville, Australia
| | - Ben Radford
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
- Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - James Davis Reimer
- Department of Marine Science, Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Zoe T Richards
- Coral Conservation and Research Group, School of Molecular and Life Sciences, Curtin University, Western Australia, Bently, Australia
- Collections and Research, Western Australian Museum, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Claire L Ross
- Marine Science Program, Biodiversity and Conservation Science, Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions, Western Australia, Kensington, Australia
- Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - John Rulmal
- One People One Reef, California, Santa Cruz, USA
- Ulithi Falalop Community Action Program, Yap, Micronesia
| | - Brigitte Sommer
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
- School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, 2007, New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | | | - Shaun K Wilson
- Marine Science Program, Biodiversity and Conservation Science, Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions, Western Australia, Kensington, Australia
- Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Januchowski-Hartley SR, Pawar SK, Yang X, Jorissen M, Bristol R, Mantel S, White JC, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Roces-Díaz JV, Gomez CC, Pregnolato M. Supporting proactive planning for climate change adaptation and conservation using an attributed road-river structure dataset. J Environ Manage 2022; 321:115959. [PMID: 36007386 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Freshwater species and their habitats, and transportation networks are at heightened risk from changing climate and are priorities for adaptation, with the sheer abundance and individuality of road-river structures complicating mitigation efforts. We present a new spatial dataset of road-river structures attributed as culverts, bridges, or fords, and use this along with data on gradient and stream order to estimate structure sensitivity and exposure in and out of special areas of conservation (SAC) and built-up areas to determine vulnerability to damage across river catchments in Wales, UK. We then assess hazard of flooding likelihood at the most vulnerable structures to determine those posing high risk of impact on roads and river-obligate species (fishes and mussels) whose persistence depends on aquatic habitat connectivity. Over 5% (624/11,680) of structures are high vulnerability and located where flooding hazard is highest, posing high risk of impact to roads and river-obligate species. We assess reliability of our approach through an on-ground survey in a river catchment supporting an SAC and more than 40% (n = 255) of high-risk structures, and show that of the subset surveyed >50% had obvious physical degradation, streambank erosion, and scouring. Our findings help us to better understand which structures pose high-risk of impact to river-obligate species and humans with increased flooding likelihood.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Sayali K Pawar
- Department of Biosciences, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK; Department of Geography and Environmental Science, University of Dundee, Dundee, DD1 4HN, UK
| | - Xiao Yang
- Department of Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | | | - Rochelle Bristol
- Department of Biosciences, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK
| | - Sukhmani Mantel
- ARUA Water Centre of Excellence, Rhodes University, Makhanda, 6140, Eastern Cape, South Africa
| | - James C White
- Department of Biosciences, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK; River Restoration Centre, Cranfield University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire, MK43 0AL, UK
| | | | - José V Roces-Díaz
- Centre for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF), Cerdanyola del Valles 36, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Carlos Cabo Gomez
- Department of Geography, Swansea University, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK; Department of Mining Exploitation, University of Oviedo, Campus de Mieres, 33600, Spain
| | - Maria Pregnolato
- Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TR, UK
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Goh TZY, Bauman AG, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Morgan KM, Seah JCL, Todd PA. Growth and carbonate production of crustose coralline algae on a degraded turbid reef system. Mar Pollut Bull 2021; 173:113135. [PMID: 34801889 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.113135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Crustose coralline algae (CCA) and other encrusting calcifiers drive carbonate production on coral reefs. However, little is known about the rates of growth and calcification of these organisms within degraded turbid reef systems. Here we deployed settlement cards (N = 764) across seven reefs in Singapore for two years to examine spatio-temporal variation in encrusting community composition and CCA carbonate production. Our results showed that CCA was the dominant encrusting taxa (63.7% ± 18.3SD) across reefs. CCA carbonate production rates (0.009-0.052 g cm-2 yr-1) were less than half of those reported for most Indo-Pacific reefs, but similar to other turbid reef systems. Highest CCA carbonate production rates were observed furthest from Singapore's main shipping port, due to a relative increase in CCA cover on the offshore reefs. Our results suggest that proximity to areas of high industrialisation and ship traffic may reduce the cover of encrusting calcifying organisms and CCA production rates which may have negative, long-term implications for the stabilisation of nearshore reefs in urbanised settings.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tiffany Z Y Goh
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore.
| | - Andrew G Bauman
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore
| | | | - Kyle M Morgan
- Asian School of the Environment, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637459, Singapore
| | - Jovena C L Seah
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore
| | - Peter A Todd
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 117543, Singapore
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Thiault L, Mora C, Cinner JE, Cheung WWL, Graham NAJ, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Mouillot D, Sumaila UR, Claudet J. Escaping the perfect storm of simultaneous climate change impacts on agriculture and marine fisheries. Sci Adv 2019; 5:eaaw9976. [PMID: 31807697 PMCID: PMC6881155 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaw9976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Climate change can alter conditions that sustain food production and availability, with cascading consequences for food security and global economies. Here, we evaluate the vulnerability of societies to the simultaneous impacts of climate change on agriculture and marine fisheries at a global scale. Under a "business-as-usual" emission scenario, ~90% of the world's population-most of whom live in the most sensitive and least developed countries-are projected to be exposed to losses of food production in both sectors, while less than 3% would live in regions experiencing simultaneous productivity gains by 2100. Under a strong mitigation scenario comparable to achieving the Paris Agreement, most countries-including the most vulnerable and many of the largest CO2 producers-would experience concomitant net gains in agriculture and fisheries production. Reducing societies' vulnerability to future climate impacts requires prompt mitigation actions led by major CO2 emitters coupled with strategic adaptation within and across sectors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lauric Thiault
- National Center for Scientific Research, PSL Université Paris, CRIOBE, USR 3278 CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, Maison des Océans, 195 rue Saint-Jacques, 75005 Paris, France
- Laboratoire d’Excellence CORAIL, Moorea, French Polynesia
- Corresponding author.
| | - Camilo Mora
- Department of Geography, University of Hawai’i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai’i 96822, USA
| | - Joshua E. Cinner
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville 4811, Queensland, Australia
| | - William W. L. Cheung
- Changing Ocean Research Unit, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, The University of British Columbia, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z4, Canada
| | | | - Fraser A. Januchowski-Hartley
- UMR 9190 MARBEC, IRD-CNRS-UM-IFREMER, Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier Cedex, France
- UMR ENTROPIE, Nouméa, New Caledonia
| | - David Mouillot
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville 4811, Queensland, Australia
- UMR 9190 MARBEC, IRD-CNRS-UM-IFREMER, Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier Cedex, France
| | - U. Rashid Sumaila
- Fisheries Economics Research Unit, The University of British Columbia, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z4, Canada
| | - Joachim Claudet
- National Center for Scientific Research, PSL Université Paris, CRIOBE, USR 3278 CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, Maison des Océans, 195 rue Saint-Jacques, 75005 Paris, France
- Laboratoire d’Excellence CORAIL, Moorea, French Polynesia
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Bauman AG, Seah JCL, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Hoey AS, Fong J, Todd PA. Fear effects associated with predator presence and habitat structure interact to alter herbivory on coral reefs. Biol Lett 2019; 15:20190409. [PMID: 31573428 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2019.0409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Non-consumptive fear effects are an important determinant of foraging decisions by consumers across a range of ecosystems. However, how fear effects associated with the presence of predators interact with those associated with habitat structure remain unclear. Here, we used predator fish models (Plectropomus leopardus) and experimental patches of the macroalga Sargassum ilicifolium of varying densities to investigate how predator- and habitat-associated fear effects influence herbivory on coral reefs. We found the removal of macroalgal biomass (i.e. herbivory) was shaped by the interaction between predator- and habitat-associated fear effects. Rates of macroalgal removal declined with increasing macroalgal density, likely due to increased visual occlusion by denser macroalgae patches and reduced ability of herbivorous fishes to detect the predators. The presence of the predator model reduced herbivory within low macroalgal density plots, but not within medium- and high-density macroalgal plots. Our results suggest that fear effects due to predator presence were greatest at low macroalgal density, yet these effects were lost at higher densities possibly due to greater predation risk associated with habitat structure and/or the inability of herbivorous fishes to detect the predator model.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andrew G Bauman
- Experimental Marine Ecology Laboratory, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Jovena C L Seah
- Experimental Marine Ecology Laboratory, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - Andrew S Hoey
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
| | - Jenny Fong
- Experimental Marine Ecology Laboratory, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Peter A Todd
- Experimental Marine Ecology Laboratory, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Goetze JS, Januchowski-Hartley FA, Claudet J, Langlois TJ, Wilson SK, Jupiter SD. Fish wariness is a more sensitive indicator to changes in fishing pressure than abundance, length or biomass. Ecol Appl 2017; 27:1178-1189. [PMID: 28140527 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2016] [Revised: 11/19/2016] [Accepted: 01/10/2017] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Identifying the most sensitive indicators to changes in fishing pressure is important for accurately detecting impacts. Biomass is thought to be more sensitive than abundance and length, while the wariness of fishes is emerging as a new metric. Periodically harvested closures (PHCs) that involve the opening and closing of an area to fishing are the most common form of fisheries management in the western Pacific. The opening of PHCs to fishing provides a unique opportunity to compare the sensitivity of metrics, such as abundance, length, biomass and wariness, to changes in fishing pressure. Diver-operated stereo video (stereo-DOV) provides data on fish behavior (using a proxy for wariness, minimum approach distance) simultaneous to abundance and length estimates. We assessed the impact of PHC protection and harvesting on the abundance, length, biomass, and wariness of target species using stereo-DOVs. This allowed a comparison of the sensitivity of these metrics to changes in fishing pressure across four PHCs in Fiji, where spearfishing and fish drives are common. Before PHCs were opened to fishing they consistently decreased the wariness of targeted species but were less likely to increase abundance, length, or biomass. Pulse harvesting of PHCs resulted in a rapid increase in the wariness of fishes but inconsistent impacts across the other metrics. Our results suggest that fish wariness is the most sensitive indicator of fishing pressure, followed by biomass, length, and abundance. The collection of behavioral data simultaneously with abundance, length, and biomass estimates using stereo-DOVs offers a cost-effective indicator of protection or rapid increases in fishing pressure. Stereo-DOVs can rapidly provide large amounts of behavioral data from monitoring programs historically focused on estimating abundance and length of fishes, which is not feasible with visual methods.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jordan S Goetze
- The UWA Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
- Department of Environment and Agriculture, Curtin University, Bentley Campus, Western Australia, 6485, Australia
| | - Fraser A Januchowski-Hartley
- Department of Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
- UMR 248 MARBEC/250 ENTROPIE, Institut de recherche pour le développement, Batiment 24, Université de Montpeller 2, 34095, Montpellier cedex, France
| | - Joachim Claudet
- National Center for Scientific Research, CRIOBE, USR 3278 CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, 66860, Perpignan, France
- Labortaoire d'Excellence CORAIL, France
| | - Tim J Langlois
- The UWA Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
| | - Shaun K Wilson
- The UWA Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
- Department of Parks and Wildlife, Marine Science Program, Kensington, Western Australia, 6151, Australia
| | - Stacy D Jupiter
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Melanesia Program, 11 Ma'afu Street, Suva, Fiji
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Januchowski-Hartley FA, Graham NAJ, Wilson SK, Jennings S, Perry CT. Drivers and predictions of coral reef carbonate budget trajectories. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 284:20162533. [PMID: 28123092 PMCID: PMC5310043 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2016] [Accepted: 01/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Climate change is one of the greatest threats to the long-term maintenance of coral-dominated tropical ecosystems, and has received considerable attention over the past two decades. Coral bleaching and associated mortality events, which are predicted to become more frequent and intense, can alter the balance of different elements that are responsible for coral reef growth and maintenance. The geomorphic impacts of coral mass mortality have received relatively little attention, particularly questions concerning temporal recovery of reef carbonate production and the factors that promote resilience of reef growth potential. Here, we track the biological carbonate budgets of inner Seychelles reefs from 1994 to 2014, spanning the 1998 global bleaching event when these reefs lost more than 90% of coral cover. All 21 reefs had positive budgets in 1994, but in 2005 budgets were predominantly negative. By 2014, carbonate budgets on seven reefs were comparable with 1994, but on all reefs where an ecological regime shift to macroalgal dominance occurred, budgets remained negative through 2014. Reefs with higher massive coral cover, lower macroalgae cover and lower excavating parrotfish biomass in 1994 were more likely to have positive budgets post-bleaching. If mortality of corals from the 2016 bleaching event is as severe as that of 1998, our predictions based on past trends would suggest that six of eight reefs with positive budgets in 2014 would still have positive budgets by 2030. Our results highlight that reef accretion and framework maintenance cannot be assumed from the ecological state alone, and that managers should focus on conserving aspects of coral reefs that support resilient carbonate budgets.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fraser A Januchowski-Hartley
- Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
- UMR 248 MARBEC/UMR250 ENTROPIE, UM2-CNRS-IRD-IFREMER-UM1, Université Montpellier 2, Montpellier, France
| | - Nicholas A J Graham
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Queensland 4811, Australia
| | - Shaun K Wilson
- Department of Parks and Wildlife, Kensington, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
- Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Simon Jennings
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft NR33 0HT, UK
- School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Chris T Perry
- Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Perry CT, Murphy GN, Graham NAJ, Wilson SK, Januchowski-Hartley FA, East HK. Remote coral reefs can sustain high growth potential and may match future sea-level trends. Sci Rep 2015; 5:18289. [PMID: 26669758 PMCID: PMC4680928 DOI: 10.1038/srep18289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2015] [Accepted: 11/16/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Climate-induced disturbances are contributing to rapid, global-scale changes in coral reef ecology. As a consequence, reef carbonate budgets are declining, threatening reef growth potential and thus capacity to track rising sea-levels. Whether disturbed reefs can recover their growth potential and how rapidly, are thus critical research questions. Here we address these questions by measuring the carbonate budgets of 28 reefs across the Chagos Archipelago (Indian Ocean) which, while geographically remote and largely isolated from compounding human impacts, experienced severe (>90%) coral mortality during the 1998 warming event. Coral communities on most reefs recovered rapidly and we show that carbonate budgets in 2015 average +3.7 G (G = kg CaCO3 m−2 yr−1). Most significantly the production rates on Acropora-dominated reefs, the corals most severely impacted in 1998, averaged +8.4 G by 2015, comparable with estimates under pre-human (Holocene) disturbance conditions. These positive budgets are reflected in high reef growth rates (4.2 mm yr−1) on Acropora-dominated reefs, demonstrating that carbonate budgets on these remote reefs have recovered rapidly from major climate-driven disturbances. Critically, these reefs retain the capacity to grow at rates exceeding measured regional mid-late Holocene and 20th century sea-level rise, and close to IPCC sea-level rise projections through to 2100.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chris T Perry
- Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Gary N Murphy
- Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Nicholas A J Graham
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK.,ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia
| | - Shaun K Wilson
- Department of Parks and Wildlife, Kensington, Perth, Western Australia 6151, Australia.,School of Plant Biology, Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia
| | | | - Holly K East
- Geography, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Januchowski-Hartley FA, Graham NAJ, Cinner JE, Russ GR. Spillover of fish naïveté from marine reserves. Ecol Lett 2012; 16:191-7. [PMID: 23126388 DOI: 10.1111/ele.12028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2012] [Revised: 08/09/2012] [Accepted: 10/09/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Spillover of adult fish biomass is an expected benefit from no-take marine reserves to adjacent fisheries. Here, we show fisher-naïve behaviour in reef fishes also spills over from marine reserves, potentially increasing access to fishery benefits by making fishes more susceptible to spearguns. The distance at which two targeted families of fishes began to flee a potential fisher [flight initiation distance (FID)] was lower inside reserves than in fished areas, and this reduction extended outside reserve boundaries. Reduced FID persisted further outside reserves than increases in fish biomass. This finding could help increase stakeholder support for marine reserves and improve current models of spillover by informing estimates for spatial changes in catchability. Behavioural changes of fish could help explain differences between underwater visual census and catch data in quantifying the spatial extent of spillover from marine reserves, and should be considered in the management of adjacent fisheries.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fraser A Januchowski-Hartley
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, 4811, Australia.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Januchowski-Hartley FA, Graham NAJ, Feary DA, Morove T, Cinner JE. Fear of fishers: human predation explains behavioral changes in coral reef fishes. PLoS One 2011; 6:e22761. [PMID: 21853046 PMCID: PMC3154266 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2011] [Accepted: 06/28/2011] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Prey flight decisions in response to predation risk are increasingly being considered in conservation and management decisions in the terrestrial realm, but are rarely considered in marine systems. This field-based study investigated how the behavioral response of coral reef fish families varied along a gradient of subsistence fishing pressure in Papua New Guinea. Specifically, we examined how fishing pressure was related to pre-flight behavior and flight initiation distance (FID), and whether FID was influenced by body size (centimeters total length), group size (including both con- and hetero-specific individuals), or life-history phase. Fishing pressure was positively associated with higher FID, but only in families that were primarily targeted by spear guns. Among these families, there were variable responses in FID; some families showed increased FID monotonically with fishing pressure, while others showed increased FID only at the highest levels of fishing pressure. Body size was more significant in varying FID at higher levels of fishing pressure. Although family-level differences in pre-flight behavior were reported, such behavior showed low concordance with fishing pressure. FID shows promise as a tool by which compliance and effectiveness of management of reef fisheries can be assessed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fraser A Januchowski-Hartley
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Feary DA, Cinner JE, Graham NAJ, Januchowski-Hartley FA. Effects of customary marine closures on fish behavior, spear-fishing success, and underwater visual surveys. Conserv Biol 2011; 25:341-349. [PMID: 21129032 DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01613.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Customary management systems (i.e., management systems that limit the use of marine resources), such as rotational fisheries closures, can limit harvest of resources. Nevertheless, the explicit goals of customary management are often to influence fish behavior (in particular flight distance, i.e., distance at which an organism begins to flee an approaching threat), rather than fish abundance. We explored whether the flight distance of reef fishes targeted by local artisanal fishers differed between a customary closure and fished reefs. We also examined whether flight distance of these species affected fishing success and accuracy of underwater visual census (UVC) between customary closed areas and areas open to fishing. Several species demonstrated significant differences in flight distance between areas, indicating that fishing activity may increase flight distance. These relatively long flight distances mean that in fished areas most target species may stay out of the range of spear fishers. In addition, mean flight distances for all species both inside and outside the customary-closure area were substantially smaller than the observation distance of an observer conducting a belt-transect UVC (mean [SE]= 8.8 m [0.48]). For targeted species that showed little ability to evade spear fishers, customary closures may be a vital management technique. Our results show that customary closures can have a substantial, positive effect on resource availability and that conventional UVC techniques may be insensitive to changes in flight behavior of fishes associated with fishing. We argue that short, periodic openings of customary closures may allow the health of the fish community to be maintained and local fishers to effectively harvest fishes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David A Feary
- United Nations University, Institute for Water, Environment and Health, Hamilton, ON L8P 0A1, Canada.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|